Every year, lawmakers look at prices for certain goods and services to determine the country’s inflation. They then use these numbers to determine if the recipients of Social Security should get an increase in their benefits checks. This is called the cost of living adjustment, but Social Security recipients didn’t receive an adjustment this year. Will 2017 be any different?
Will There Be A Cost Of Living Adjustment In 2017?
This year, officials said that the dollar didn’t suffer much if any inflation. So lawmakers avoided raising the amount of benefits received by Social Security recipients. This was bad news for the elderly and people with disabilities.
Though inflation seemed to stay steady, the actual cost of living did not. Food, rent, and transportation costs are still a major concern for many people with disabilities, especially here in Oklahoma. The state’s assistance services have been slashed due to partisan politics in the state legislature. So many people relying on these services are already tightening their belts, and things don’t look like they are going to get better.
Analysts are estimating that 2017 could see a cost of living adjustment of around 0.2 percent next year. That is $2 for every beneficiary that receives $1000! However, there is still hope for people with disabilities here in Oklahoma.
Oklahoma could expand Medicaid and accept federal dollars to help pay for your medical insurance. A bipartisan move like that could help pump state funds back into the services people need to get by. And it could also save thousands of people from getting stuck in the Medicaid gap! To learn more about the future Oklahoma’s disability services, follow our blog, Facebook and Twitter.