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Social Security To Raise Benefits By 5.9% Starting Next Year
On Wednesday, the Social Security Administration announced that members will receive a 5.9% increase in benefits beginning next year.
The increases will affect nearly 70 million recipients of Social Security benefits. Officials hope that the adjustment can help members deal with higher prices caused by inflation.
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Bigger Social Security Checks Beginning January 2022
Beginning January, checks with bigger amounts will arrive for most beneficiaries. However, 8 million recipients of the Supplemental Security Income program will get the bump later this year in December. The program is for Americans with disabilities or who earn little income.
Inflation is the main reason why the Social Security Administration will implement a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that prices of goods rose by 5.4% on an annualized basis last September. The inflation rate also rose by 0.4% between August and September.
New Social Security Rates based on Increase In Average Wages
The agency issued a statement where it announced its adjustments. “Some other adjustments that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages.
Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $147,000 from $142,800,” it said yesterday.
In addition, the agency announced that beneficiaries will receive a notice about the adjustment this December. Typically, COLA increases range between 1 to 2% annually.
During the Great Recession in 2009, benefits went up by 5.8 percent for 50 million people. Prior to this year’s adjustments, the 2009 increase was the largest rate increase in the last 25 years.
The Increase Will Only Offset The Rise in Prices of Goods
Even as a nearly 6% increase would look very attractive, inflation has largely dampened any potential gains. Patrick Hubbard, a research associate for the Center for Retirement Research, said the increase doesn’t change anything. “Everything is 6% more expensive these days and is only the minimum needed to maintain the purchasing power that you’ve had all along,” Hubbard told CNBC.
Mark Zandi of Moody’s Analytics agrees. The company’s chief economist said that higher prices are a result of the pandemic-infused disarray. He added that experts expect inflation to return to 2% levels in 2022 as supply and demand stabilize.
Medicare Will Also Water Down Effects of COLA
In addition, Medicare (part B) and taxes can also offset the increase in social security benefits.
According to Hubbard, these two factors also increase every year. Part B premium payments usually get dedicated from the monthly checks of Social Security beneficiaries. The actual amount for Medicare Part B depends on the income.
In 2021, the monthly premium of Medicare B was at $148.50 for single individuals earning up to $88,000 income. For married couples, the threshold is at $176,000. Social Security benefits increase is around 2.2% on average.
In comparison, Medicare Part B premiums go up by 5.9%. As a result, the COLA increase of 5.9% is an exception and not the rule. “There is this increase in the benefit, but because it’s eroded by Medicare premiums, it’s not nearly fast enough to keep up with what inflation would be,” Hubbard remarked.
Watch the Yahoo Finance video reporting that Social Security benefits will increase by 5.9% for 2022:
Loading ...What do you think of the Social Security increases in premiums to its beneficiaries? Will this help many retirees down the line?
Let us know what you think. Share your comments in the comments section below.
27 Comments
This is even enough to cover basic nesscessity for basic human needs. I do think that the money that they are giving to illegals are better spend if they gave all of it to Americans instead.
I agree . We need to take care of the American citizens first and then all else last. There are too many citizens doing without and now we aree
You’re right.
Before they print money for any new spending, there should be a figure attached to the bill that indicates how much the new printing will reduce the value of the dollar.
I live in NYC I’m on SSDI DON’T evening make $13,200 year so I could used all the $$$$ I need help SOS SOS 911 911 911
Social Security recipients will be lucky to see any real increase once the Medicare deduction gets its share.
Those democrats are are after the older votes by doing this.that is their only reason. they couldnt kill enought of us with virus. It is a total their way to stay in power.
Isn’t this a great country where our politicians can give millions and millions to other countries …. leave millions of dollars worth of government equipment in Afghanistan weapons… ammunition …. and we can’t help the homeless we can’t help the people in Appalachia ….and now we’re going to provide for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants it makes you wonder
they have been telling us for a month it would 6.1 so now they drop it to 5.9 and increase the mencare 10.00 a month and give the rest congress
It’s what you’d expect from Carter presidency redux we have today. Living in a sock puppets dirty hand,he thinks all is great along with the news media. 56% on one question, are you better off today than 4 years ago! That was Trumps number,Obama 43%. Fraud election!
We the people have to get the crooks out of office sooner then later starting with Biden
They really didn’t get a raise because of inflation the government takes better care of the illegals and lazy people that don’t want to work most people who draw social security have worked a long time and have paid in enough to earn a lot more money more money should go into social security not sent overseas to people who hate the United States and want to kill us
Your better off coming to America illegally than you are working the majority of your life and paying into SS. The Government is not GIVING us this money it’s money they took from us while we worked! And they screwed us on that too because they squandered it and gave it to people who never paid into it.
I totally agree! We need to take care of the American people who are starving, living in boxes on the street and seniors who have to decide between food or medicine before we give our money to illegals!
You put it in one pocket and take it out of the other pocket. Stop taxing Social security benefits. This regime has no interest in helping Americans. Illegals are the new democrat voters.
Congress gave themselves a 13% raise which metric did they use to come up with that % “Rules for thee but not for me” . “Let’s go Brandon”
You are absolutely correct! Social Security is not a benefit – it is the money of the people who worked and paid into it for their whole working career.
Put all the money back that was stolen by Congress and we would all be wealthy!
Stop giving SS cards to illegals which will also help!
Don’t fool yourself, Social Security recipients will be forunate if they recieve
1/3 of 5.9 %. Like always the government likes to make big deal out of the fact
you’re getting 5.9 % increase, however,they said you only recieve 2 % of the. 5.9%.
democrat = regressive, lying, corrupt/criminal, useless, godless, BABY KILLERS, radical socialist/communist/marxists craving total absolute raw POWER to CONTROL everybody and everything to ENRICH themselves and FORCE their evil ANTI-CHRISTIAN lifestyle agenda on children and society. Yes, the USA is divided, good will not unite with evil and right will not unite with wrong!
JUST KEEP YOUR PANTS BUTTONED TIGHTLY OR BIDEN WILL FUCK YOU IN THE ASS, LIKE HE DOES TO ALL OF US EVERY DAY.
We seniors who worked all their lives and paid into the Social Security program are so far behind the eight ball and not getting the amount that we are entitled to and there is no logical reason for it, The politians in Washington who don’t pay into S.S. are giving our money away to people who has never paid into it and that includes all of these illegal aliens coming across our southern border.
We seniors should never have to worry about where our next meal will come from or pay Peter to to rob Paul.
And the so called ”experts” say that by 2030 S.S. will be broke. Well if that is the case then all of the Congressional officials should lose all of their retirement, health insurance and any other perks that we seniors paid for. In fact they should lose them now and have to pay for their own retirement, health care insurance AND be forced to pay into Social Security like the rest of us Americans. I’ll bet we’d see a big change then.
FJB AND ALL THOSE LIARS AND EVILDOERS IN HIS ADMINISTRATION
Don’t allow illegals to get social security it was intended for the senior citizens now every drunk illegal alcoholic gets the money I paid into it for over 43 years and don’t receive what I should but someone who never worked a day receives 50 less than me what the hell get a job or cut them off I’m 62 years old and had to go back to work to survive I’m don’t qualify for food stamps because I make to much 300 over there limit but if you are on welfare you get everything and not required to work it’s my taxes that pay for welfare
Sounds like more BS to me.They will take it back through our income tax?We will get the shaft on this.To little to late.
A small pittance is not going to make us happy,the government is giving huge free money
for unemployment,checks to lazy people than wont work and they don’t pay into s.s. We on social security should get at least the same raise as those getting more just because they have a larger
monthly social security check. any raise in social security checks should be a across the board we should all get the same amount not a % increase. To many of us can not see any increase due to the cost increase of part B insurance we see nothing on our checks/.
I’ll promise you that this will equal the increase in medicare like it always does. All it amounts to is and increase in taxes for the people who can afford it. Congress comes thru again saying they have done something that amounts to nothing!
when a melon is $7 and gas is up to $10 a gallon this increase will not make or break people living on it