Approximately 70 million Americans will see a 5.9% increase in their Social Security benefits and SSI payments in 2022.
Federal benefit rates increase when the cost of living rises, as measured by the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI-W). According to Jack Myers at Social Security, the CPI-W is a measure of inflation, so if things get more expensive, the CPI-W rises. Since 1975, the Social Security cost of living adjustment, or COLA, has been automatically tied to inflation.
When the Social Security COLA is announced, people often wonder about the Medicare Part B premium since it is deducted from the Social Security payment. Medicare recently announced that the standard Part B premium will be $170.10 in 2022 (up from 148.50 in 2021). Myers stresses there is no need to call to check on this increase.
According to Myers, Social Security will be mailing COLA notices throughout December, but the notice will be available within your mySocialSecurity message center in early December if you’d like to see it sooner. Your account had to have been established by November 17, 2021, to get this year’s COLA notice within your Message Center, but if you missed that deadline, there are still many other advantages to having your account. Create one at ssa.gov/myaccount. You can even sign up for text or e-mail alerts when a new notice arrives in your Message Center.
Myers says to look for the “Message Center Preferences” within your mySocialSecurity account to sign up for those alerts. Learn more about the 2022 COLA by visiting www.ssa.gov/cola.
