Elderly
Currently, 3.4 million seniors age 65 and older live below the poverty line and millions more are barely making ends meet just above the poverty line. Racial and gender issues also contribute to the effect of poverty among the elderly. Elderly people of color are less likely than whites to receive private retirement benefits and are far less likely to have asset income. If the monetary benefits from all public programs were excluded from their incomes, more than 6 in 10 African American and Hispanic American elderly would be poor and even when income from public programs other than Social Security are counted, 21 percent of African-American and 17 percent of Hispanic-American elderly remain poor.
Among elderly women over 2.3 million over the age of
65—11.5 percent—live at or below the poverty line, while slightly over
1 million—6.6 percent—of senior men live in poverty. 19 percent of
single, divorced, or widowed, over the age of 65 are poor and at risk
of poverty. This risk only increases with age. Only 416,000 men, age
75 and older, live at or below the poverty line, while over 1.3 million
women ages 75 and up are poor.
- Adapted from the Center for Economic Progress
Resources:
Senior Economic Security Fact Sheet
This fact sheet, by Demos, is based on the report "Living Longer on Less." It highlights key areas of vulnerability, including:
- Housing - 45% of senior households spend nearly a third of their income on housing. 31% either rent or have no home equity to draw on in tough times;
- Healthcare - 40% of senior households spend more than 15% of their income on healthcare;
- Budgets - 1 in 3 senior households has no money whatsoever left over after meeting essential expenses;
- Assets - More than half of all senior households (54 percent) do not have sufficient financial resources to meet median projected expenses based on their current financial net worth, projected Social Security, and pension incomes.
EBRI Databook on Employee Benefits
Chapters 6 and 7 of this comprehensive analysis of how the employee benefits system works, by the Employee Benefits Research Institute, provides income statistics and income sources for people over the age of 55.
