Social Security Announces 1.3 Percent Benefit Increase for 2021

October 14, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for approximately 70 million Americans will increase 1.3 percent in 2021, the Social Security Administration announced today.

The 1.3 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits payable to more than 64 million Social Security beneficiaries in January 2021. Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 31, 2020. (Note: some people receive both Social Security and SSI benefits). The Social Security Act ties the annual COLA to the increase in the Consumer Price Index as determined by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Some other adjustments that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages. Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $142,800 from $137,700.

Social Security and SSI beneficiaries are normally notified by mail starting in early December about their new benefit amount. Most people who receive Social Security payments will be able to view their COLA notice online through their personal my Social Security account. People may create or access their my Social Security account online at www.socialsecurity.gov/myaccount.

Information about Medicare changes for 2021, when announced, will be available at www.medicare.gov. For Social Security beneficiaries receiving Medicare, Social Security will not be able to compute their new benefit amount until after the Medicare premium amounts for 2021 are announced. Final 2021 benefit amounts will be communicated to beneficiaries in December through the mailed COLA notice and my Social Security’s Message Center.

The Social Security Act provides for how the COLA is calculated. To read more, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.

October 13, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

The DeKalb County High School Football game at Macon County this Friday night, October 16 is in the running for the Tennessee Titans High School Game of the week and Tiger fans are urged to cast their votes on line today at https://www.tennesseetitans.com/community/game-of-the-week

Voting ends at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, October 14.

The Titans High School Game of the Week program, presented by BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, is designed to recognize excellence in high school athletics.

Each week throughout the season, a panel of media members select the top matchups from around the state. These nominations are then eligible to be selected as the Titans High School Game of the Week.

Other games in the running this week are Oakland at Riverdale, David Crockett at Tennessee High, and Hardin County at Lexington.

Fans are encouraged to vote for their preferred matchup throughout the week right here at https://www.tennesseetitans.com/community/game-of-the-week. The game with the most votes will become the Titans High School Game of the Week, with the winning head coach being named the Titans High School Coach of the Week.

Each Coach of the Week will receive a grant from the Tennessee Titans in the amount of $1,000 to benefit their school’s football program.

Through the Coach of the Week program, the Titans have donated more than $230,000 in grant funding to high school football programs across the state.

October 13, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

The number of DeKalb County COVID-19 related deaths is now 17.

According to the daily snapshot of DeKalb County as of Monday, October 12 provided by the Tennessee Department of Health, 17 people with COVID-19 have died in since March while the number of active cases is now at 58.

There have been 637 confirmed or probable cases of COVID-19 since March in DeKalb County , 24 have been hospitalized, and 562 are now inactive or have recovered. To date, DeKalb County has 3,108 cases per 100,000 residents. Over the last seven days, (October 6-12), DeKalb County had a daily case rate of 27.2 cases per 100,000 residents per day. Over the last 14 days, (September 29 to October 12), DeKalb County has averaged 4.6 new cases reported per day. For the 14 days prior (September 15-28), the average was 3.6.

Over the last 7 days DeKalb County has averaged 72.3 tests per day (35.3 tests per 10,000 residents per day) and over the last 7 days the average percent positive was 8.5%.

Snapshot of 14 Upper Cumberland Counties:

*Putnam 383 active cases and 50 deaths

*Overton 210 active cases and 2 deaths

*Fentress 201 active cases and 5 deaths

*Cumberland 174 active cases and 23 deaths

*Warren 133 active cases and 9 deaths

*White 125 cases and 10 deaths

*Smith 123 active cases and 12 deaths

*Macon 107 active cases and 22 deaths.

*Pickett 78 active cases and 3 deaths.

*Clay 75 active cases and 6 deaths

*DeKalb 58 active cases and 17 deaths

*Cannon 57 active cases and 2 deaths

*Jackson 50 active cases and 5 deaths

*Van Buren 15 active cases and 1 death

The DeKalb County Health Department’s testing hours are Monday-Friday from 9am to 12 NOON every day.