Social Security COLA 2027: what the 3.6% increase changes for Florida seniors

The COLA is automatic. No one has to apply (SSA OIG). It's based on the increase in the CPI-W from the third quarter of 2025 to the third quarter of 2026. Other 2027 figures moved with it (SSA fact sheet):

Most people have the Part B premium taken out of their Social Security, so the January deposit reflects the new benefit minus the new premium. In 2026 the standard premium is $202.90 (Medicare.gov). CMS sets the 2027 figure each fall.

Federal law protects many people from a net cut. If you got Social Security for November and December and your Part B premium is deducted from your December and January benefits, a premium increase generally can't reduce your net benefit below the prior year's net. This is often called the hold-harmless rule (42 U.S.C. 1395r(f)). It doesn't apply to people who pay an income-related surcharge (IRMAA), or to people newly enrolled in Part B.

If you receive Medicaid or a Medicare Savings Program that pays your Part B premium, the State pays it, so the premium increase doesn't come out of your check. See Medicare Savings Programs in Florida.

Federal law doesn't count the January COLA as income for the Medicare Savings Programs until the month after the new federal poverty guidelines are published (42 U.S.C. 1396d(p)(2)(D)). That keeps people from losing QMB, SLMB or QI help in January, before the income limits catch up. The 2027 limits will follow the new poverty guidelines, usually published early in the year.

Florida's nursing home, assisted living and home-based long-term care Medicaid programs use an income cap of 300% of the SSI federal payment. That's $2,982 in 2026 (DCF Appendix A-9). At $1,029 for 2027, the same formula gives $3,087. DCF publishes the official figure in its updated Appendix A-9.

Two things follow. First, someone whose gross income was just under $2,982 may still be under the new cap after a 3.6% raise, because the cap rises by the same percentage. Second, a nursing home resident's patient responsibility, the monthly amount paid toward care, usually rises with the COLA, because more income is left after the $160 personal needs allowance (DCF Appendix A-9). Expect a DCF notice with the new amount, and pay the new figure when it takes effect. Medicaid renewals and reporting changes covers what to report and when.

A Miller trust (Qualified Income Trust) is needed when gross income is over the cap. The minimum monthly deposit is gross income minus the cap. Because income and the cap both change in January, a fixed deposit that worked in 2026 can come up short in 2027. How to set up a Miller trust explains the trust itself.

Hypothetical: a Lantana widow in a nursing home has $3,400 a month in gross income in 2026, all from Social Security. Her trustee deposits $418, the exact minimum. After a 3.6% raise, her benefit is about $3,522.

VA pension rates, including Aid and Attendance, usually rise each December 1 by the same percentage; see VA Aid and Attendance. Income-related Medicare surcharges for 2027 are based on the tax return from 2 years earlier, which for 2027 generally means 2025 income (Medicare & You). If a large one-time event, such as a home sale, raised 2025 income, plan for that.