[LateBoomer]

this is of course due to a 20 year high in inflation. I think it's going to hasten bankruptcy of the system, however.

[Jensor17]

I dont understand why government does anything anymore. For years there's no COLA then comes a whopper. .
Some folks eek by on $300 a month SS and rely on the largesse of relatives or neighborhood groups like Elks or moose lodge. The ones who get $4500 a month SS PAYMENTS MAKE ME QUESTION THE WHOLE SHEBANG. I know a gal whose husband passed and she had infant twins, and collects $1500 a month + 1500 +1500 survivor benefits. All i got when my husband passed was $225 one -time SS check SINCE I WAS COLLECTING MY OWN SS benefit.
Where is the logic in no benefits and. Overpaying on others ?

[Curtisbwp]

Two years (in the past) President Obama adjusted the COLA to 0%

[biker1]

No, the system isn’t going to go bankrupt. The trust fund, essentially the accumulated difference between what what paid in as tax and what was paid out as benefits plus interest, will be depleted in the future as we start to draw down the trust fund. At that point, what is paid in will not be sufficient to cover the benefits being paid out and the benefits will be reduced by some percentage, perhaps around 25%. This issue is technically very easy to solve but it is still a political problem. Stay tuned ....

Originally Posted by LateBoomer

this is of course due to a 20 year high in inflation. I think it's going to hasten bankruptcy of the system, however.

[rustyp]

[QUOTE=Mulliganguy;2017303]

Originally Posted by MichaG.

Whoo Whoo, you're getting a raise Village people.

Don’t get to excited. Medicare will take most of it.

Originally Posted by Lindaws

Raise? Medicare will take the raise.

Originally Posted by Hans53

this will be eaten up by increases in medicare and supplements.

Originally Posted by OhioBuckeye

You’re exactly right!

Originally Posted by biker1

Depends on the size of your SS benefit. Not everyone gets the same benefit. And not everyone pays the same to Medicare.

Correct biker. If your income is $88K or less and your monthly SS check was les than $170/month (not likely since that equals a yearly benefit of only $2040) than the Medicare increase will eat up the new SS raise.

People please stop comparing the 5.9% raise SS increase to the Medicare 6.7% premium increase. That is an apples and oranges comparison.

[rustyp]

Originally Posted by Curtisbwp

Two years (in the past) President Obama adjusted the COLA to 0%

SS increases are based upon an automatic COLA calculation since its inception. Today's method utilizes the CPI-W index method which was instituted June 1975.

[jdulej]

Originally Posted by Curtisbwp

Two years (in the past) President Obama adjusted the COLA to 0%

If it was 2 years ago it was not Obama

[tvbound]

Originally Posted by Vikingjunior

I can’t wait to see what kind of increase members of Congress get.

Originally Posted by DaleDivine

Theirs will probably be a minimum of 10%...

Salaries and Benefits of US Congress Members

A large dose of reality seems to be needed.

"Pay Increases"

"Members of Congress are eligible to receive the same annual cost-of-living increase given to other federal employees if any. The raise takes effect automatically on January 1 of each year unless Congress, through the passage of a joint resolution, votes to decline it, as Congress has done since 2009."

[jdulej]

Originally Posted by tvbound

Salaries and Benefits of US Congress Members

A large dose of reality seems to be needed.

"Pay Increases"

"Members of Congress are eligible to receive the same annual cost-of-living increase given to other federal employees if any. The raise takes effect automatically on January 1 of each year unless Congress, through the passage of a joint resolution, votes to decline it, as Congress has done since 2009."

Thanks for posting this. Congress was shamed into this during the financial crisis and has not had the gall to change it since then. Luckily for us, they are very good at not doing things

[biker1]

I am not sure how that was possible. I believe the maximum family benefit is 180% of the beneficiary (who died). That would suggest a bit under $3000 for the family.

Originally Posted by Jensor17

I dont understand why government does anything anymore. For years there's no COLA then comes a whopper. .
Some folks eek by on $300 a month SS and rely on the largesse of relatives or neighborhood groups like Elks or moose lodge. The ones who get $4500 a month SS PAYMENTS MAKE ME QUESTION THE WHOLE SHEBANG. I know a gal whose husband passed and she had infant twins, and collects $1500 a month + 1500 +1500 survivor benefits. All i got when my husband passed was $225 one -time SS check SINCE I WAS COLLECTING MY OWN SS benefit.
Where is the logic in no benefits and. Overpaying on others ?

[Chi-Town]

Originally Posted by Curtisbwp

Two years (in the past) President Obama adjusted the COLA to 0%

Hmmm. How did he do that adjustment.

[mydavid]

Originally Posted by manaboutown

Well my monthly increase won't even fill up my gas tank at today's prices - and that is BEFORE I pay additional income tax on it. Big whoop!

More expensive food, rents boost U.S. inflation; further increases anticipated

I've been drawing SS for 15 years and have yet to pay income tax on it, sounds like I could that COL raise.

[jdulej]

Originally Posted by Guitarman1951

Don't worry, the democrats will just print more money that the country has to borrow creating even more inflation and national debt.

It’s fun to blame the dems for the national debt but the truth is every administration has run the tab up by trillions. The only ones really justified were Obama, some of Trumps aimed at pandemic recovery and Biden's for the same reason.
For as long as the US is the top of the heap debt does not really matter

[Pres1939]

Nice, but how much of this is negated by an increase in Medicare?? That usually happens. 😩😩

[MollyJo]

On the flip side, when a gang member is ‘taken out’ by a rival gang, there’s a lot of ‘future babies’ not being created…