Making ends meet on Social Security Disability benefits can be difficult, as the costs of goods and services often rise every year. That’s why the Social Security Administration (SSA) considers adjusting the amount of Social Security Disability and retirement benefits people receive on a yearly basis.
What Is The 2015 Social Security Disability COLA?
The SSA recently came to a consensus about how much this Cost-of-Living-Adjustment (COLA) should be for next year. According to an article from ABC News, disability recipients should expect to see a 1.7 percent increase in the amount of benefits they receive.
What Does The COLA’s Increase Mean?
While most Social Security Disability recipients welcome any increase in payments, the COLA for 2015 still isn’t much. The small percentage in increase will likely only increase monthly payments by $20, much of which will be taken by the 1.3 percent increase in benefit taxes.
How Is The Social Security Disability COLA Determined?
The COLA is determined through the use of an equation called the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which examines the fluctuation in costs of goods and services—such as food, housing, and transportation—from year to year during a three-month period. The federal government considered changing these rules to a chained CPI—or an equation that considers Americans search for cheaper options when costs rise.
COLA Eases Financial Struggles
At Ponce Law, we know the financial strains that dependence on Social Security Disability benefits can cause. That’s why our team of Nashville personal injury lawyers is hopeful next year’s COLA will help to alleviate some of the financial hurdles many disability recipients face on a daily basis.