what are some criticisms of the cpi 
over the years the cpi has frequently drawn criticism that it has either understated or overstated inflation because the cpi is based on consumer spending it doesn t track third party reimbursements for healthcare and significantly underweights healthcare relative to its proportion in the gdp as a result on the other hand criticism concerning the quality adjustments used in the cpi has been widely discounted by economists the bottom linethe consumer price index is an important economic metric it measures the average change in prices paid by consumers over a period of time for a basket of goods and services the index is calculated and published monthly by the bureau of labor statistics it is among the most common measures of inflation indicating the health and direction of the economy it also serves in other capacities notably to help make adjustments to certain income payments such as social security and pensions for federal civil service retirees 