"And while some of those people have outside income they can rely on, like IRAs or 401(k) plans, for many seniors, Social Security's annual cost-of-living adjustments, or COLAs, are extremely important. Without those annual raises, seniors would be almost guaranteed to fall behind on their expenses due to inflation. Over time, living costs tend to rise gradually. But if Social Security benefits don't get boosted, the people who receive them have no way to keep up with those increases in the absence of other income."
"That said, the SSA may be forced to delay that crucial announcement. And that could leave seniors waiting longer for answers. Why this year's COLA announcement could be delayed Social Security COLAs are based on inflation. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is scheduled to release September's Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) on Oct. 15. That data is needed for the SSA to finalize its COLA."
Millions of older Americans rely on Social Security as their primary or sole retirement income, making annual cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) critical to offset inflation. COLAs are tied to inflation measures, specifically the CPI-W, which the Bureau of Labor Statistics schedules to release for September on Oct. 15. The Social Security Administration uses that CPI-W data to finalize the 2026 COLA and plans an Oct. 15 announcement. A government shutdown could pause BLS operations, delay the CPI-W release, and force the SSA to postpone the COLA announcement, leaving seniors uncertain about benefit changes.
Read at 24/7 Wall St.
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