At the GOP debate in Miami, five Republicans sparred over top issues include the Israel-Hamas war, Ukraine, China, abortion and Social Security. Here's what you need to know.
Social Security beneficiaries will receive a 3.2% cost of living adjustment next year. Inflation has been moderating recently, with consumer prices in September up 3.7% from a year ago.
If a shutdown happens, millions of federal employees will be furloughed and many others will be forced to work without pay until it ends. A handful of federal programs that people nationwide rely on everyday could also be disrupted — from dwindling funds for food assistance to potential delays in customer service for recipients of Medicare and Social Security.
States routinely took the benefits checks of children in foster care who were orphans or disabled. After an NPR/Marshall Project investigation, there's reform.
The Treasury estimates the country could default on its loans early next month. But negotiators are still hashing out key provisions like whether to expand work requirements for federal assistance.
Unless Congress acts to raise the federal debt limit, the U.S. government could run short of cash to pay its bills as early as June 1. Seniors, veterans, government workers and others would suffer.
Policymakers will need to patch the Social Security program by 2033 to avoid draconian cuts in benefits, a year earlier than had been predicted. A trust fund for Medicare will run out of cash by 2031.
Congress ended the temporary benefit meant to help low-income households with pandemic-era hardships. A huge increase in Social Security benefits may mean some households see further SNAP reductions.
A nationwide affordable housing crisis has wreaked havoc on the lives of low-income families, like Louana Joseph’s in Atlanta, who are close to the brink. Their struggle to stay a step ahead of homelessness is often invisible.
Retirees and others who rely on Social Security will see a large boost in benefits next year, with the average benefit rising by $141 per month, as inflation stays above 8%.
After reading an investigation by NPR and the Marshall Project, former foster youth are asking what happened to their benefits — and the government isn't helping.
The new projections in the annual Social Security and Medicare trustees reports indicate that the program will be unable to pay full benefits in 2034. Last year's estimated exhaustion date was 2035.
Many senior citizens entered their golden years with more debt than previous generations, and now they're struggling financially as they try to provide care for an ailing relative during the pandemic.
