Pike County Dependent On Social Security Payments

{Pike County, Kentucky}...If Pike County residents didn't receive their monthly payments from the Social Security Administration, 11.2 percent of total personal income in the county would be lost, a total of $230,844,768 in the most recent reporting year. Pike County is more dependent on Social Security payments than is the rest of the country. Nationally, 5.5 percent of total personal income came from Social Security payments. In Kentucky, 7.6 percent of all income comes from these payments. In Pike County, 18,790 people receive some form of Social Security payment, Social Security beneficiaries represent 28.7 percent of the total county population. Total Social Security payments in Pike County amounted to $3,527 per person. The national average was $2,199 per person, and in Kentucky it was $2,508. Changes to Social Security are being discussed in Congress, which is looking for ways to balance the larger federal budget. If benefits are cut - or if the eligibility age is increased - rural counties and small cities would be disproportionately affected according to the Social Security Administration.