Why Thousands of Americans May Not Have Enough to Live on in Retirement

Retirement is something that many of us don’t think a lot about when we are younger. We work and assume that at some point we can just live comfortably in our older years. Unfortunately, many Americans end up realizing too late that they don’t have enough to live on after they retire. While some would call this an issue of poor planning, the fact is, there is a bigger issue at play. The problem is that we are told that Social Security will be there for us, but in reality, these benefits are not enough.

The problem is that Social Security benefits do not keep up with inflation. As costs increase, retirement benefits cannot remain the same. If benefits do not reflect the current cost of living, recipients siply can’t afford their daily needs. Every year, the Social Security Administration announces the annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA.) This is meant to adjust benefits to meet inflation and rising costs. However, this increase has consistently failed to provide a sufficient increase. It is clear that we can not rely on COLA to give older Americans the benefits they earned. We have a better idea.

The bill we call The Greatest Generation Benefits Act would could provide the exact change seniors need. This proposes an increase in benefits for seniors over age 82. This increase would give these Americans an $85 per month as well as an additional 4 percent every year after. This is a huge increase over what seniors have seen through COLA. The change is so important to Americans who have done so much for us. Congress, however, still needs to pass the bill before it can go into effect. Just take a look at our  nationwide survey to see the overwhelming public support. However, we still need the support of more concerned citizens. Please sign our petition and let Congress know that it is time to give back to those who gave the most.