This bill changes how Social Security calculates annual benefit increases for seniors. Right now, Social Security uses the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) to figure out cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs)—the yearly bump seniors get to keep their benefits in line with inflation. The problem is that this index was designed for working people, not retirees, so it doesn't accurately reflect what seniors actually spend money on.

This bill says Social Security should instead use whichever index gives seniors the bigger raise: the current CPI-W or a new Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers (CPI-E) that tracks what people 62 and older actually buy—things like healthcare, prescription drugs, and housing, which tend to be bigger expenses for seniors. By always choosing the higher number, seniors would get fairer cost-of-living adjustments that better match their real expenses. The change would apply to Social Security retirement benefits, survivor benefits, and disability benefits, and would start being used for adjustments made after September 30, 2026. Until the government finishes creating the new elderly consumer index, it would temporarily use an existing research index that tracks senior spending.