Mar 13, 2017
Bill Proposed to Fix COLA Gap
"...For the past two years, federal retirees have cautiously watched the cost-of-living-adjustment rates to see whether their rise, or lack thereof, would mean a staggering price tag for Medicare benefits.
But a new bill from Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif., aims to end the near-annual cliffhanger by shifting the COLA from one Consumer Price Index and onto another.
Garamendi introduced HR 1251 — or the CPI-E Act of 2017 — on Feb. 28 with the goal of changing the formula used to calculate the COLA rates from the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) to the CPI for the elderly, or CPI-E.
The COLA determines how much select retirees — including many former federal employees — will be able to offset the rise in their Medicare premiums..."
