AI Summary Senate Democrats have introduced a bill to expand Social Security Administration (SSA) and Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) benefits by $200 per month for six months, aiming to provide economic relief amid persistently high inflation. The move follows the Oct. 24 announcement of an average cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of 2.8% in 2026 for the 53 million Americans who receive Social Security retirement benefits an increase of about $56 per month.
Replace outdated data: This proposed change has bipartisan support. It would use the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Requirements Survey (ORS) to replace the Dictionary of Occupational Titles. The Social Security Administration must make decisions about how to interpret occupational data, including determining how many jobs exist at different skill levels and requiring different levels of exertion, as these factors impact eligibility. Regulatory changes would both alter the data source and modify this process.
The cost of living got even more expensive for Americans last month, with prices rising at the fastest pace since the start of the year. Consumer prices rose 0.3% in September, which drove the annual rate of inflation from 2.9% to 3%, the highest it's been since January, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday. Gas prices, which shot up 4.2% for regular unleaded fuel (their highest monthly gain since August 2023), were the biggest culprit behind the monthly increase, BLS data shows.
Retirees in New York face one of the steepest financial gaps in the nation when relying solely on Social Security. According to a Realtor.com® analysis of median Social Security benefits by state and the Elder Economic Security Standard Index, the typical retiree in New York experiences an annual shortfall of $7,248, or about $604 per month, even with their mortgage fully paid.
The typical retiree in Massachusetts faces an annual shortfall of $7,345, or about $612 per month, even with their mortgage fully paid. Additionally, retirees here face average monthly living expenses of $2,634, while the median Social Security benefit is just $2,022 per month. With housing costs averaging $1,007 per month, retirees' budgets simply cannot keep pace. With housing consuming nearly half of the average Social Security check, seniors are forced into deficit territory before accounting for food, transportation, or healthcare.
As top congressional Republican and Democratic leaders dig in their heels-a signal that the ongoing federal government shutdown may continue for a while-many older Americans are wondering if they will still get their Social Security checks, and questioning how a prolonged showdown will affect their future benefits. Currently, thousands of federal employees are working without pay and President Donald Trump is threatening mass federal layoffs.
Social Security is designed so that married people have a big advantage that never-married people do not have: They can collect benefits based on their own earnings or up to half of the earnings of their spouse, whichever is higher. Never-married people do not have an alternative source of benefits that may be greater than their own. A little more than half of married women today collect their spouse's benefits because those benefits are greater than their own, Carr and her colleagues report.
Bisignano added that younger generations are likely to face a different set of rules than current retirees. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that the population paying into and drawing from Social Security will rise from 342 million in 2024 to 383 million in 2054. With fertility rates low, the CBO expects immigration to account for all population growth after 2040. But Bisignano said raising the retirement age is not the only option.
While reaching retirement age can be both a blessing and a curse, relying on the U.S. government to provide for your needs is not the best idea. The full retirement age is 66 if you were born from 1943 to 1954. The full retirement age increases gradually for those born from 1955 to 1960, reaching 67. For anyone born in 1960 or later, full retirement benefits are payable at age 67.
