Imagine that after completing your economics course (you get an a, of course) you are at a family gathering. your grandmother asks you about a news story she read this morning. the story explained that when the government adjusts social security payments for inflation, it generally uses the cpi-w, which is the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers. because senior citizens spend a lot more than average on medical care, adjustments to their social security payments are not keeping up with their cost of living

Ihope this would based on my research,  there are two questions: 1. last year i received $15,000 per year from the government. the story said that the cpi increased from 144 to 162. how much will i get this year? we need to get the cpi if in increased from 144 to 162, to get the cpi we have(cpi₂ - cpi₁ / cpi₁  ) 100  if we use the formula we will get 12.5%.  so if in last year your grandmother received $15000, this year she will get $13,125.2. why might this additional money not allow me to maintain my standard of living? it will not allow you to maintain your standard living because due to inflation prices may have risen.