(KFOR NEWS  October 13, 2022)   (AP) — Millions of Social Security recipients will learn soon just how high a boost they’ll get in benefits next year.

The increase to be announced Thursday, expected to be the largest in 40 years, is fueled by record high inflation and is meant to help cover the higher cost of food, fuel and other goods and services. How well it does that depends on inflation next year.  The boost in benefits will be coupled with a 3% drop in Medicare Part B premiums, meaning retirees will get the full impact of the jump in Social Security benefits.

The announcement comes just weeks before the midterm elections, and at a time when Democrats and Republicans are sparring about high prices now and how best to shore up the program financially in the future.  President Joe Biden has pledged to protect both Social Security and Medicare. “I’ll make them stronger,” he said last month. “And I’ll lower your cost to be able to keep them.”

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement Wednesday that the combination of a Social Security benefit boost and a decline in Medicare premiums will give seniors a chance to get ahead of inflation. “We will put more money in their pockets and provide them with a little extra breathing room,” she said.

About 70 million people — including retirees, the disabled and children — receive Social Security benefits. This will be the biggest increase in benefits that baby boomers, those born between the years 1946 and 1964, have ever seen.

READ MORE:   Nebraska ACT Scores Decline But Out Perform Peer States