Thread: Social Security checks to rise 2 percent in 2018, the biggest increase in years

Social Security checks to rise 2 percent in 2018, the biggest increase in years

By Heather Long October 13 at 9:20 AM

Sandy Lacoss of Woodstock, Vt., lives on less than $700 a month for Social Security and a small $200 pension. (Carolyn Y. Johnson/The Washington Post)


Social Security checks are going up 2 percent in 2018, the U.S. government announced Friday.

It's the first substantial raise in years.

More than 66 million Americans receive Social Security payments. Most recipients are seniors over age 65, but some payments also go to the severely disabled and orphans. The average check is currently $1,377 a month, meaning next year's increase will raise the typical payment by $27 a month.For Sandy Lacoss of Woodstock, Vt., the pay bump can't come soon enough.

“We need more money to live on,” said Lacoss, a 71-year-old retired cleaner. “My rent goes up every year. I really can't afford it.”

Social Security checks rose 0.3 percent in 2017. In 2016, the checks didn't go up at all, leaving many seniors saying they are struggling to keep up on their bills. There hasn't been an increase greater than 2 percent since 2011.

[2 percent federal retirement COLA set for January]
The raise is a cost of living adjustment (COLA) that's meant to keep up with higher costs of everything from rent to medications. But many seniors think the government's calculations are flawed.

“If you polled seniors, 10 out of 10 would say the COLA is not keeping up with their costs,” said Gary Koenig, vice president of financial security for AARP.

But others say the COLA formula, which has been used since 1975, is fair.

“Seniors are not getting slighted,” said Charles Blahous, who served as the public trustee for Social Security and Medicare from 2010 through 2015 and is now a researcher at the Mercatus Center.

The COLA isn’t meant to be a merit increase, Blahous said. He points out that years where there’s been no increase in the COLA are actually good for seniors because those were years when prices weren’t rising (or even fell), yet seniors don’t get their checks reduced. The 2018 rise is larger than in past years, partly because Hurricanes Harvey and Irma caused a jump in gas and other prices in September.

The Social Security Administration bases the COLA on a measure of inflation called CPI-W, a statistic that captures how fast costs are rising for workers. Most seniors are retirees who no longer have jobs. Health care is their biggest expense, and it's one of the fastest rising costs in America.

Medicare Part B premiums are expected to rise in 2018, eating up much of the Social Security increase for some seniors.

Lacoss has rheumatoid arthritis and asthma. She gets dizzy sometimes and broke her arm a few years ago from a fall.

Her doctor suggested that she get a Lifeline, a medical alert system, but she asked him how she was supposed to pay for it.

“I wish I could go to work, but the doctors won’t let me,” Lacoss said. She lives off about $900 a month — $691 a month from Social Security and $207 from a pension from an old job — putting her just below the poverty line of $12,060 a year for one person.

Social Security is a financial lifeline for many. The monthly payments lifted over 26 million Americans out of poverty last year, according to the Census Bureau, making it the most effect anti-poverty program the government has.

“The income older Americans get from Social Security is critical in keeping them out of poverty,” Koenig said. About half of older Americans rely on Social Security for 50 percent or more of their income, AARP found.

President Trump vowed during his campaign not to cut Social Security benefits.

Lacoss has already been informed that her rent payment is going up in December. With no children or spouse, she is on her own to make her meager budget work. She exhausted her savings paying for medical bills and car repairs in recent years. She's thankful for a local food bank, which helps her out with groceries.

Her only splurge is her cat, Sassy Girl.

“She’s my buddy and I’m her buddy,” says Lacoss. “I’ll go without before she will have to go without.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...=.3762c2544f6b

3 Changes to Medicare in 2018 That You Need to Know

“I wish I could go to work, but the doctors won’t let me,” Lacoss said. She lives off about $900 a month — $691 a month from Social Security and $207 from a pension from an old job — putting her just below the poverty line of $12,060 a year for one person.

Doctors should not be telling people with arthritis and asthma not to work. There are jobs out there that people with arthritis and asthma can do without causing them problems or putting them at risk. People on SS can earn quite a bit of extra income now without jeopardizing their Social Security. The last number I heard was $15,000 a year.

Originally Posted by Judy

Doctors should not be telling people with arthritis and asthma not to work. There are jobs out there that people with arthritis and asthma can do without causing them problems or putting them at risk. People on SS can earn quite a bit of extra income now without jeopardizing their Social Security. The last number I heard was $15,000 a year.

That amount of money she makes is so low. People who want to work should be encouraged not discouraged.

FAQ HomeRetirementEarnings Effect on Retirement Benefits

What happens if I work and get Social Security retirement benefits?

You can get Social Security retirement benefits and work at the same time. However, if you are younger than full retirement age and make more than the yearly earnings limit, we will reduce your benefit. Starting with the month you reach full retirement age, we will not reduce your benefits no matter how much you earn.

We use the following earnings limits to reduce your benefits: If you are under full retirement age for the entire year, we deduct $1 from your benefit payments for every $2 you earn above the annual limit.

For 2017 that limit is $16,920.

In the year you reach full retirement age, we deduct $1 in benefits for every $3 you earn above a different limit, but we only count earnings before the month you reach your full retirement age.

If you will reach full retirement age in 2017, the limit on your earnings for the months before full retirement age is $44,880.

Starting with the month you reach full retirement age, you can get your benefits with no limit on your earnings.

Use our Retirement Age Calculator to find your full retirement age based on your date of birth.

Use our Retirement Earnings Test Calculator to find out how much your benefits will be reduced.

What counts as earnings:

When we figure out how much to deduct from your benefits, we count only the wages you make from your job or your net earnings if you're self-employed. We include bonuses, commissions, and vacation pay. We don't count pensions, annuities, investment income, interest, veterans, or other government or military retirement benefits.

Your benefits may increase when you work:

As long as you continue to work, even if you are receiving benefits, you will continue to pay Social Security taxes on your earnings. However, we will check your record every year to see whether the additional earnings you had will increase your monthly benefit. If there is an increase, we will send you a letter telling you of your new benefit amount.

When you’re ready to apply for retirement benefits, use our online retirement application, the quickest, easiest, and most convenient way to apply.

If you need to report a change in your earnings after you begin receiving benefits:

If you receive benefits and are under full retirement age and you think your earnings will be different than what you originally told us, let us know right away. You cannot report a change of earnings online. Please call us at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-077 between 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, or contact your local Social Security office.

https://faq.ssa.gov/link/portal/3401...ement-benefits
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Starting this year in 2017, you can earn almost $17,000 a year in wages without impacting your benefits. That would make a big difference for people who are still able to do some work.This woman in the story could get a telephone job or receptionist job a few days a week or a few hours a day and even at minimum wage in most states increase her income by $600 to $700 a month, which would make a big difference in her lifestyle.

Judy, that is still not much.. Illegal aliens can rake in the money through benefits and our seniors and elderly live without so much.

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeach

Judy, that is still not much.. Illegal aliens can rake in the money through benefits and our seniors and elderly live without so much.

She can earn more working while on SS than her SS and Pension Combined. Our low-income retired seniors are in a terrible spot. They really can't afford to retire. Pitiful situation yet all the politicians want to talk about is what they can do with our money and jobs for illegal aliens. DISGUSTING!!

We have to get all the low life illegal alien moochers, whiners and con artists out of our country.