People are living longer, more expensive lives, often without much of a safety net.  As a result, record numbers of Americans older than 65 years of age are working — now nearly 1 in 5.  That proportion has risen steadily over the past decade, and at a far faster rate than any other age group.  Today, 9 million senior citizens work, compared with 4 million in 2000.  While some work by choice rather than need, millions of others are entering their golden years with alarmingly fragile finances.
Fundamental changes in the U.S. retirement system have shifted responsibility for saving from the employer to the worker, exacerbating the nation’s rich-poor divide.  Two recent recessions devastated personal savings of many.  And at a time when 10,000 baby boomers are turning 65 every day, Social Security benefits have lost about a third of their purchasing power since 2000.
Rising Medicare Part B Costs
Millions of seniors will soon be notified that Medicare premiums for physicians’ services are rising and likely to consume most of the cost-of-living adjustment they’ll receive next year from Social Security.  Higher 2018 premiums for Medicare Part B will hit older adults who’ve been shielded from significant cost increases for several years, including large numbers of low-income individuals who struggle to make ends meet.  “In effect, this means that increases in Social Security benefits will be minimal, for a third year, for many people, putting them in a bind,” said Mary Johnson, Social Security and Medicare policy consultant at the Senior Citizens League.
In a new study, her organization estimates that retirees have lost one-third of their buying power since 2000 as Social Security cost-of-living adjustments have flattened and health care and housing costs have soared.  Another, much smaller group of high-income older adults will also face higher Medicare Part B premiums next year because of changes enacted in 2015 federal legislation.
Source/more:  Washington Post , Kaiser Health News
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