Pension increase not enough

WHILE the latest increase to pensions is welcome, the government should be doing more to help pensioners with costs for things like visiting the dentist, according to the President of the Corrimal Pensioners Association.

Member for Cunningham Sharon Bird told the Wollongong and Northern Leader that an annual adjustment to the pension rate would come into effect on September 20, increasing the maximum pension rate for single people as well as couples.

“The maximum single pension rate will rise by $12.60 to $537.70 a fortnight, while the maximum partnered pension rate for each member of a couple will rise by $10.650 to $449.10 a fortnight,” she said.

Corrimal Pensioners Association President Reg Doherty said pensions have not been increasing in proportion to increases in living costs, and are just not big enough to cover the medical expenses of many recipients.

“I would say for normal day to day living it's not a struggle, but with the dental thing and pharmaceuticals it becomes a battle to keep up,” he said, adding that the latest adjustment might cover the coast of petrol for pensioners for a couple of weeks, but does nothing to solve these bigger problems.

Ms Bird said just over 17,000 pensioners in the federal seat of Cunningham will receive the pension increases when they come into place this month.

She also agreed with Mr Doherty's claims.

“The very sorts of things that people on a pension spend their money on are the components that are increasing (in price) well above the inflation rate,” she said.

“I think the first most important thing that a government could to is find ways to bring the cost of those items down.

“That is why we have talked about the monitoring of petrol and food costs.

“The same applies to health, in particular that health policies should be bringing down the cost of health services.”

Ms Bird said she had encouraged groups like the Corrimal Pensioners Association to make submissions to an ongoing government enquiry which is looking into the cost of living for people on fixed incomes.