Modest Social Security Increase Planned For 2021

WASHINGTON (AP) –  Social Security recipients will get a modest 1.3% cost-of living-increase in 2021, but that might be small comfort amid worries about the coronavirus pandemic and its consequences for older people. The increase amounts to $20 a month for the average retired worker, according to government estimates released Tuesday. The cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, affects the personal finances of about 1 in 5 Americans. The economic fallout from the virus reduced tax collections for Social Security and Medicare, likely worsening their long-term finances. But there’s been no real discussion of either program in the personally charged election contest between President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden.