The United States has one of the highest costing healthcare in the world. Over the past few years, this already high cost has continued to climb even higher, a problem for many, especially senior citizens.
An Average Senior’s Healthcare Payments
The average Social Security benefit in 2022 is $1,657 each month. As a report from AARP notes, retirees spend an average of $6,168 each year, and that’s in out-of-pocket expenses; this calculates to around $514 each month — that’s over 31 percent of beneficiaries’ monthly payments!
Regrettably, Medicare does not completely cover healthcare costs. This reality is exacerbated by the fact that the annual cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) given to senior citizens do not take healthcare costs into account. Meaning, while healthcare costs continue to climb, senior citizens are expected to pay more and more out-of-pocket expenses.
Why Isn’t Healthcare Considered for COLA?
COLA calculations are used to factor inflation into Social Security beneficiary’s payments. To do this, the Social Security Administration uses the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, also known as the CPI-W, to measure changes in consumer prices.
Unfortunately, this index does not adequately consider healthcare costs, leaving a gap in the COLA calculations. This gap leaves senior citizens with financial insecurities, forcing seniors to consider how they would pay for any additional medical conditions and expenses that can come with age.
We Demand More Financial Security
Healthcare is essential, especially as individuals age and become prone to developing more health conditions.
That is why our bill demands that COLA calculations take healthcare costs into account. In fact, the third right of our bill states that “increases in healthcare costs must be used in calculating annual Social Security COLA increases.”
This change would allow senior citizens to have additional expenses specifically for healthcare costs, allowing them more financial security. For more information, or to read our bill in its entirety, visit our website here.
