POSTED: Tuesday, October 12, 2010 - 5:04pm
UPDATED: Friday, July 6, 2012 - 10:30am
EL PASO- Over 54 million people in the United States get social security benefits. Nearly 40 million of those are seniors, and a recent proposal has some of them here in El Paso upset.
"That's all I'm depending on right now. Social security," says Jesus Espinoza.
And each year, Jesus gets a cost of living raise. His social security check goes up to match inflation.
"We can live a little more comfortably and afford the things we need," he says.
But a pending announcement from the Social Security Administration has him worried.
For the second year in a row, the cost of living raise will likely be cut. That means less money for nearly 40 million seniors in the program.
"They don't have enough money for what they actually need to live on. There's a lot of people that are hurting right now, I know for sure," one woman told us.
The cost of living adjustment, or COLA, is determined by the Consumer Price Index, a number figured out by averaging the price of things like gas and food.
"It's skewed against the elderly and disabled," says Jeff Diamond.