There’s no question that the current high-inflationary environment is jeopardizing the financial security of many American seniors.

But there appears to be some much-needed help on the way. Per CBS News, millions of Social Security recipients are currently on track for a nearly 11 percent cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) for next year, according to a new analysis from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. If that becomes reality, it would amount to the largest COLA increase in four decades.

“If inflation continues at its current pace—the cost of goods and services in May accelerated to 8.6%—seniors could receive a COLA hike of 10.8% in early 2023,” the news outlet writes.

However, “if inflation grinds to a halt over the final months of 2022, seniors would receive a COLA increase of 7.3%, the group predicted,” the CBS report continues.

Considering that the average monthly Social Security check comes in at about $1,658, a 10.8 percent bump would mean that a typical check would trek to $1,837. This would surely be welcome among many seniors as consumer prices have surged across the board.

The Senior Citizens League noted in its release last month that persistent high inflation has caused Social Security benefits to lose an eye-opening 40 percent of their buying power since 2000. In March of last year, the figure was at 30 percent.

“That’s the deepest loss in buying power since the beginning of this study by the Senior Citizens League in 2010,” Mary Johnson, Social Security and Medicare policy analyst at the Senior Citizens League, said in a statement.

Furthermore, per CNBC, a recent poll has revealed that half of the respondents aged over fifty-five have spent their emergency savings over the past year due to hot-running inflation. Additionally, nearly 50 percent admitted that they have visited a food pantry or applied for benefits via the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

Meanwhile, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR) have introduced the Social Security Expansion Act, which aims to send out an extra $200 per month—or $2,400 annually—to Social Security recipients.

The lawmakers’ legislation comes after the Social Security Administration (SSA) earlier this month confirmed that seniors will stop receiving their full Social Security benefits in about thirteen years if Congress doesn’t take necessary action to shore up the program.

“This legislation would ensure that the Social Security Trust Fund remains solvent for another seventy-five years, increase monthly benefits for most recipients by $200, and alter the cost-of-living-adjustment formula to meet the everyday needs of our nation’s seniors,” DeFazio said in a release.

Ethen Kim Lieser is a Washington state-based Finance and Tech Editor who has held posts at Google, The Korea Herald, Lincoln Journal Star, AsianWeek, and Arirang TV. Follow or contact him on LinkedIn.

Image: Reuters.