How Retirees’ Social Security Benefits Boost is Already Spent

Social Security recipients will receive bigger benefits starting in January. The Social Security Administration (SSA) set its 2025 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) at 2.5 percent. On average, that will add about $50 to each monthly check. A CBS News report illustrates why that is not enough for cash-strapped seniors. It looked at how much the cost of everyday items that retirees purchase has increased and it’s easy to see why this benefits boost is already spent.

Here are some examples: a pound of butter increased from $4.41 in 2023 to over $5 in 2024; coffee increased from $6.09 a pound to $6.47; steak went from $7.77 per pound in 2023 to $8.15 this year; and eggs skyrocketed from $2.07 per dozen in 2023 to $3.82 in 2024.

The Seniors Trust is committed to improving the financial well-being of America’s retirees through the passage of The Social Security Expansion Act. It will give retirees an immediate benefits increase of about $200 a month, establish a fair annual COLA, and it will ensure the long-term solvency of the Social Security program.