You know, I do a lot of town hall meetings, and people are always happy when there's an announcement of a COLA. MAX RICHTMAN: That's one of the real beauties of Social Security - is it has this built-in adjustment for inflation. And Max Richtman, who heads the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, says that is a good thing. You don't have to negotiate this increase with the boss or even get Congress to approve. They adjust every January in line with the inflation rate for the previous July, August and September. You know, so-called fixed incomes are not really fixed. We did see falling prices last month, though, for back-to-school clothes and used cars.ĬHANG: So how does the cost of living increase that social security is planning compare to the actual increase in the cost of living? Prices rose four-tenths of a percent just between August and September, and a lot of that was rising rents and gasoline prices. That's similar to what we saw in August, although it is way down from the nine-plus-percent inflation rate we saw last summer. We got new inflation numbers today, and they show that consumer prices in September were up 3.7% from a year ago. Of course, inflation has also eased up a lot in the last year.ĬHANG: Yeah, but prices for things like heat and insurance are still climbing, right? That 8.7% jump was the largest in decades. HORSLEY: Next year's increase will be a lot smaller than the one Social Security recipients got this year. I mean, you know, when you talk about real life, it makes it pretty tough. HORSLEY: Egner lives in Ketchikan, Alaska, and says her Social Security check barely covers necessities like insurance and heat.ĮGNER: There's nothing left over for anything else - birthdays, Christmas. For those like Carol Egner, any boost in their monthly benefit is good news.ĬAROL EGNER: Every little bit helps, I mean, if everything keeps going up. HORSLEY: Yeah, a lot of people who depend on Social Security have been eager to hear how much of a jump they can look forward to next year. Hey, Scott.ĬHANG: OK, so I understand you've been talking with some seniors about this increase. It's designed to offset inflation, but it may not keep pace with the actual cost of living. That's an increase of 3.2% over this year's benefits. Starting in January, the average retiree will get an extra $55 in their monthly payment. Tens of millions of people who rely on Social Security got some news that they've been waiting for today.
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