Posted on 10/13/2021 6:30:48 AM PDT by karpov
Seniors and other Americans receiving Social Security benefits in 2022 will see the largest increase in their payments in four decades, reflecting surging inflation during the pandemic.
Next year’s cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, will be 5.9%, the Social Security Administration said Wednesday. The increase will translate to an addition of $92 to retirees’ average monthly benefit next year, bringing the amount to $1,657.
The nearly 6% cost-of-living adjustment is the largest since 1982, according to Social Security Administration data. The adjustment is calculated based on the Labor Department’s measure of inflation faced by blue-collar workers.
The Social Security Administration also said the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax will increase to $147,000 in 2022 from $142,800 this year.
The extent to which the projected larger-than-usual Social Security adjustment makes retirees’ and other recipients feel more well off will largely depend on whether inflation eases next year compared with 2021, said Naomi Fink, a retirement economist at Capital Group, an investment manager.
Consumer prices have risen at the fastest rate in more than a decade this year because trillions of dollars in economic stimulus have supported consumer demand at a time when supplies for everything from toilet paper to new cars have been constrained because of pandemic disruptions.
“If price rises turn out to be fleeting and reflect temporary supply shocks and they subsequently show much more modest rises in 2022, then that would be quite positive for those that got that windfall cost-of-living adjustment,” said Ms. Fink, who added that scenario could position Social Security recipients to boost consumption.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
WHATSOCIAL SECURITY GIVETH, MEDICARE TAKETH AWAY.
IT’S ALL SMOKE AND MIRRORS........................
Bingo!
Seniors and other Americans receiving Social Security benefits
Why do “other Americans” get Social Security? It is meant for workers who have paid into the system when they reach 62 years old. But the politicions have tapped into the fund and handed it to many others. As an example, if they want to help people who are born with or develop some sort of disability then fine, but set up a separate account to help them from. The Social Security fund will be “tapped out” pretty soon and most people don’t know why.
The price of my Kombucha has increased 9%. How will I get by with a 5.9% increase? Will I have to resort to buying Cat Kombucha?
Inflation is at 8% right now. The inflation we feel in real costs and lost income was at 6% on 1 October 2021. Hence the 5.9% increase. I am not an Economist, but these were the numbers I recall from an article I read on the pending increase. For our household the real value of the increase lay not in the monthly check but the increase in allowable income earned before Social Security is taxed.
Yeah, you don’t notice it so much as you fill the cart, but checkout is a total shock.
Correct. Rents for many seniors will increase as well.
About enough for 1.5 tanks of gas?
************
LOL. How true.
We try to buy most of our gas at COSTCO.
But the politicions have tapped into the fund and handed it to many others.
************
Its THEIR vote buying fund.
If you have anything left over after the Medicare deduction from your SS check you might have enough to go to Walmart and buy a ham or a couple of Rotisserie chickens. (The cold ones are cheaper! Go Mondays!)
We can generally get one chicken to feed 3 people dinner for 3-4 days and then make stock for another day! It does get old after a while and you need to switch out to something else, but no to alpo!
I got no raise where I work. Plotting my escape, shortly there will be an email to the group saying “I don’t work here anymore.”
........and gas, heating,fuel,milk and the list goes on. That 5.9 will be wiped out the 1st week of each month if not the 1st day.
BFD
family visits...
What is wrong with you your not allowed “Family” anything
I agree 100%. I was just focusing on the gubment itself raising the price of Medicare, undoing the gubment’s supposed blessing to the elders. The gubment giveth, the gubment taketh away, even with the gubment making everything else expensive through inflation.
It is interesting that Medicare increases are never mentioned when SS increases are announced. SS and Medicare are in tandem. Net increase to recipients of SS is close to nil.
Did they release the IRMAA brackets?
Applying 5.9 percent gives single $94K, $118K, $147K, $175K, married $188K, $236K, $292K, and $350K. These brackets are rounded up to the nearest thousand.
It just occurred to me that they will probably be increasing the IRMAA amounts as well. Both this, and the standard premiums, won’t be announced until later in the year.
>>So, what is continuing to hold interest rates down? Manipulation?<<
Bingo!
The Fed’s main concern right now is what happens to the value of their portfolio when they stop supporting the bond market.
I don’t have Medicare Part “B”. So I get the full increase, Yea!!!
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