Are you sure? So far as I know, Social Security is not means tested, yet. At some point, SS benefits do become subject to income tax, that is true.
The government has decided that my (non-govt) pension is too large for me to receive my full SS retirement benefits and is therefore justified in taxing several thousands of dollars of those benefits as "taxable income"
That right there is a form of means testing no matter *what* some politician or accountant wants to call it!
They have cut my check twice so YES I know. The first cut ended and the second began. I have the letters from the IRS. In them, the possible reasons why my benefit was lowered are listed but doesn’t say which reason was used in my case.
The “you may have had a large capital gain” reason is the only one that fits me in both cases.