General Discussion

What you receive is based on income, but it isn't directly proportionate.

People with lower income receive relatively larger payouts compared to what they paid in. People with higher incomes have a lower return on their "investment." That was the basis for the (recently eliminated "Windfall Elimination Provision." If you received income you didn't pay SS taxes on (state employees, federal employees, etc.), your income may look in the calculation like you were a low-income worker - which bumped your payout up relative to your income.

(In the sense of the structure, it is an entitlement program. You have to pay in, but you aren't entitled to a payout that is proportional to what you put in. This article has a graph that illustrates the concept that payout is not directly proportional to the amount you paid in: https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/issuepapers/ip2009-01.html)

So removing the cap doesn't inherently mean the maximum per person payout has to change. It wasn't intended to cover all retirement needs - it was intended to make sure that everyone had some income during retirement.)