Aug 4, 2026
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Add us on GoogleCost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) are meant to ensure that Social Security benefits keep up with inflation.
But one advocacy group says that the latest 2.8% COLA was not enough, and that older adults are struggling because benefits have not kept up with the cost of goods at large.
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The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) says in its 2026 Senior Survey that older adults in America are facing serious economic challenges, and recommends several policy changes, including the way that COLAs are calculated.
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Seniors living on $1,000 a month
The TSCL survey collected responses from 904 participants over age 62 and eligible for Social Security benefits. That data was then weighted against U.S. Census Bureau population data. As of 2024, there are 55.8 million seniors living in the U.S.
TSCL Survey results found that 44% of respondents live on between $1,001 and $2,000 per month, and 10% live on less than $1,000 in income. If those percentages are applied to census data, the survey estimates that 24.5 million seniors could be living on $1,001 to $2,000 a month and 5.6 million older adults could be living on less than $1,000.
Overall, these estimates mean that millions of older Americans are near or below the poverty line, and at risk of housing insecurity. A 2023 Department of Health and Human Services report says individuals aged 55 and older make up roughly 20% of the sheltered homeless population.
“Older adults are especially vulnerable to homelessness as many live on fixed incomes insufficient to cover all their expenses, especially housing expenses,” the HHS report says, adding that “half of renters ages 50 and older pay more than 30% of their income on housing.”
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Are COLAs inadequate?
Since 1975, COLAs have been calculated based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).
TSCL estimates that Social Security benefits “lost approximately 13.7% of their buying power between 2016 and 2026.”
“In particular, housing and transportation costs have increased faster than overall inflation over the last 15 years, which is especially difficult for seniors who rent their homes or live in areas with low walkability or public transportation access,” the TSCL report said.
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The COLA for 2025 was 2.8%, which 89% of respondents in the TSCL survey said fell short of inflation. “Most seniors believe that 2025 had much higher levels of inflation than the CPI-W reported,” the study said.
Changing the formula
TSCL argues for both a guaranteed minimum COLA of 3%, as well as reforms to the formula used to calculate the adjustments.
Instead of using the CPI-W, since “seniors are not urban wage earners or clerical workers,” TSCL argues that the Social Security Administration should use a different price index to calculate COLAs — the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly (CPI-E).
The CPI-E “regularly comes in higher than the CPI-W,” and if someone who retired in 1999 had received benefits calculated using this index, by 2025 they would have collected an additional $5,000, TSCL says.
Other calls for reform from TSCL include a one-time “Senior Stimulus” payment to make up for “weak” COLAs, and eliminating all taxes on Social Security benefits.
At least two-thirds of older adults support these policy recommendations, and that support doesn’t change based on political affiliation, TSCL says. While the country may be divided on many issues, older adults agree that Social Security benefits need to be strengthened.
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Rebecca Payne has more than a decade of experience editing and producing both local and national daily newspapers. She's worked on the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, Metro, Canada's National Observer, the Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press.
