Summary
Congress is looking at changing how Social Security benefits increase to better match inflation. Two new bills propose either overhauling the current adjustment method or giving a temporary monthly boost to payments. These changes aim to help retirees manage rising living costs.
Key Facts
- Social Security affects over 50 million Americans' retirement income.
- Congress is considering two bills to change how benefits adjust for inflation.
- One bill proposes using a new measure, CPI-E, to better reflect retirees' expenses.
- Another bill suggests a temporary $200 monthly increase in benefits until July 2026.
- Current adjustments use CPI-W, focusing on urban worker spending, not retirees.
- Inflation has caused Social Security benefits to lose value over the years.
- Many seniors depend on Social Security for more than half of their income.
- Rising health care costs often reduce the benefits of COLA increases for retirees.
