For the first time in 35 years, senior citizens won't receive a raise on their Social Security payments this year, although most seniors are finding they need an increase now more than ever. Is it a sign of times to come?
An article on SmartMoney.com about seniors struggling to keep up with inflation looked at how Social Security just isn't cutting it anymore.
According to the article:
- Older Americans have significantly higher health-care expenses than younger Americans, with premiums for Medicare Part B increasing about 14-fold since 1976
- For a man born in 1918 who began collecting Social Security
benefits in 1983, payments net of medical expenses rose from
an initial $542 a month to $867 a month by the end of 2007
- In a comparison of Consumer Wage Indexes (a measure estimating the average price of consumer goods and services purchased
by households) for different groups from December 1982 to December 2007 showed the elderly are paying more for goods. The CPI for Urban Wage Earners rose
115.2%, compared to a 126.5% raise in the CPI for the elderly.
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