Overview
- The 2.8% adjustment will reach roughly 71–75 million beneficiaries, lifting the average retirement check by about $56 per month starting in January 2026, with SSI reflecting the change on December 31, 2025.
- By law the COLA is tied to the CPI-W, while a new bill would switch to the CPI-E, which the Social Security chief actuary estimates would raise future adjustments by about 0.2 percentage points but widen the program’s long-term shortfall by roughly 11%.
- Senate Democrats unveiled the Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act to add $200 per month for six months through July 2026 for Social Security, SSI, railroad retirement, and certain veterans’ benefits, with costs not yet scored by the CBO.
- Experts and advocates warn that higher Medicare Part B premiums and faster-rising expenses in health care, shelter, groceries, and energy could limit how much of the announced increase beneficiaries actually keep.
- The SSA also raised the 2026 maximum taxable earnings for payroll tax to $184,500, while trustees project the OASI trust fund can pay full benefits until 2033, after which about 77% of scheduled benefits would be covered absent reforms.