Social Security COLA 2024 Estimate Rises to 3.2%
The estimates follow an 8.7% cost-of-living increase in 2023.
The Senior Citizens League estimates the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, for 2024 is likely to be 3.2%, based on the latest consumer price index data, released Wednesday.
This is up slightly from the 3% prediction made in August, thanks to higher inflation data across many key CPI categories.
The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), the index used to determine the COLA, rose 3.7% over the past 12 months, while increasing 0.6% in August — compared with a 0.2% rise in July.
A COLA of this size would raise the current average monthly benefit of $1,789 by a little more than $57, but Social Security recipients won’t learn the bottom line until the Medicare Part B premiums are announced, according to The Senior Citizens League.
Mary Johnson, the league’s Social Security and Medicare policy analyst, says the CPI data shows retirees continue to struggle with increasing prices, underscoring the critical importance of the annual COLA to Americans’ retirement security.
COLA Estimate Grows With August 2024 Inflation Data
The index for gasoline was the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, accounting for over half of the increase. Also contributing to the August monthly increase was continued advancement in the shelter index, which rose for the 40th consecutive month.
As the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports, the energy index rose 5.6% in August as all the major energy component indexes increased. Despite that jump, the energy index decreased 3.6% for the 12 months ending in August.
The food index increased 0.2% in August, as it did in July, while the index for food at home increased 0.2% over the month, after a 0.3% increase in July.
The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.3% in August, following a 0.2% increase in July.
The all items index increased 3.7% for the 12 months ending August, a larger increase than the 3.2% increase for the 12 months ending in July.
Credit: David Palmer/ALM