Archive
Were They Prepared for Retirement? Financial Status at Advanced Ages in the HRS and Ahead Cohorts
Were They Prepared for Retirement? Financial Status at Advanced Ages in the HRS and Ahead Cohorts (PDF)
Many analysts have considered whether households approaching retirement age have accumulated enough assets to be well prepared for retirement. In this paper, we shift from studying household finances at the start of the retirement period, an ex ante measure of retirement preparation, to studying the asset holdings of households in their last years of life. The analysis is based on Health and Retirement Study with special attention to Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old (AHEAD) cohort that was first surveyed in 1993. We consider the level of assets that households hold in the last survey wave preceding their death. We study how assets at the end of life depend on three family status pathways prior to death— (1) original one-person households in 1993, (2) persons in two-person household in 1993 with a deceased spouse in the last year observed, and (3) persons in two-person households in 1993 with the spouse alive when last observed. We find that a substantial fraction of persons die with virtually no financial assets—46.1 percent with less than $10,000—and many of these households also have no housing wealth and rely almost entirely on Social Security benefits for support. In addition this group is disproportionately in poor health. Based on a replacement rate comparison, many of these households may be deemed to have been well-prepared for retirement, in the sense that their income in their final years was not substantially lower than their income in their late 50s or early 60s. Yet with such low asset levels, they would have little capacity to pay for unanticipated needs such as health expenses or other financial shocks or to pay for entertainment, travel, or other activities. This raises a question of whether the replacement ratio is a sufficient statistic for the “adequacy” of retirement preparation.
Educational differences in chronic conditions and their role in the educational differences in overall mortality
Educational differences in chronic conditions and their role in the educational differences in overall mortality
Source: Demographic Research
Demographers use different models to decompose the prevalence of given health conditions. This article discusses how these models can help us understand the ways in which these conditions affect overall mortality. In particular, this framework can be used to understand the role that any given condition plays in producing differences in overall mortality across populations. The empirical analysis in this study focuses on chronic conditions as factors behind elderly US citizens’ differences in overall mortality across educational levels. The analysis of differences by education level shows that while the prevalence differences of chronic conditions is mostly the outcome of incidence differences, regarding overall mortality differences, the role of chronic conditions is equally channelled through incidence and excess mortality differences.
Correcting Labor Supply Projections for Older Workers Could Help Social Security and Economic Reform
Correcting Labor Supply Projections for Older Workers Could Help Social Security and Economic Reform
Source: Urban Institute
Changing age demographics have powerful implications for the shape of the nation’s work force. Formal models of labor force participation fail to take into account that as the relative supply of younger workers declines, employers will increasingly turn to older workers to meet their demand for labor to provide goods and services. Increased labor force participation among older workers can add to the solvency of Social Security and the broader federal budget. Policymakers in both the public and private sectors can accommodate this trend by removing barriers that discourage hiring and retaining older workers.
Workplace Action Steps for Leveraging Mature Talent: Findings from the Talent Management Study
Workplace Action Steps for Leveraging Mature Talent: Findings from the Talent Management Study
Source: Sloan Center on Aging and Work (Boston College)
We’ve all heard the advice about putting something aside for a rainy day. Trouble is, many of us fail to heed that advice. And when it comes to planning ahead for their human resources needs, many U.S. companies aren’t much better. A new analysis of the Talent Management Study, conducted by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College, indicates that companies have not done a good job of gathering the information they need to ensure they have the right people in place to get the job done. This finding is being borne out in today’s coverage of the country’s labor troubles. News media regularly report on the shortage of skills that employers currently face. The 2009 Talent Management Study found that more than two-thirds of employers (68%) had done little or no analysis of the makeup of their work force. And three out of four employers had done little or nothing to collect information about employee career plans, work preferences or projected retirement rates.
The new analysis of these findings concludes that the more employers analyze their own talent management situations, the more likely they are to have policies and plans in place to recruit, engage and retain older workers. In other words, the analysis draws a direct link between employers’ lack of prior human resources planning and today’s skills shortage.
Don’t Ignore Boomers – The Most Valuable Generation
Don’t Ignore Boomers – The Most Valuable Generation
Source: Nielsen
Born between 1946 and 1964, the Baby Boomers are 80 million strong. Yet despite their significant size and spending power, these high potential consumers have been largely unaddressed by marketers and advertisers since they started to age out of the popular 18-49 cohort. In five years, 50 percent of the U.S. population will be 50+. These consumers spend close to 50 percent of all CPG dollars yet less than 5 percent of advertising is geared towards them. A new report by Nielsen in collaboration with BoomAgers, examines this opportunity and guides the way forward with actionable insights into this valuable cohort, dubbed the “Most Valuable Generation.”
n the next five years, Boomers are set to control 70 percent of the disposable income in the U.S. What’s more, they stand to inherit $15 trillion in the next 20 years. As they age out of the work force, 67 percent of Boomers plan to spend more time on their hobbies and interests, moving from a life dedicated to making money to one that is directed to spending money. This lifestyle requires two simple ingredients: money to spend and the time to spend it. The Boomer is a dynamic consumer and a very valuable one. It’s clear that taking their loyalty for granted, or forsaking them for being too loyal or set in their ways, are both risky approaches for marketers.
Free registration required to download full report.
Living arrangements, intergenerational support types and older adult loneliness in Eastern and Western Europe
Living arrangements, intergenerational support types and older adult loneliness in Eastern and Western Europe
Source: Demographic Research
BACKGROUND
Previous research has shown that living arrangements (independent households of those living alone or as a couple, versus coresident households encompassing adult children) are important determinants of older adults’ loneliness. However, little is known about intergenerational support exchanges in these living arrangements and their associations with loneliness.OBJECTIVE
Our aim is to contribute to the knowledge on associations between living arrangements and loneliness, by taking into account and differentiating intergenerational support types.METHODS
Using data from the Generations and Gender Surveys of three countries in Eastern Europe and two countries in Western Europe, Latent Class Analyses was applied to develop intergenerational support types for (a) co-residing respondents in Eastern Europe, (b) respondents in independent households in Eastern Europe, and (c) respondents in independent households in Western Europe, respectively. Six types resulted, distinguishing patterns of upward support, downward support and get-togethers. Subsequently, we used linear regression analyses to examine differences in loneliness by region, living arrangements and intergenerational support type.RESULTS
Findings show higher levels of loneliness in Eastern than in Western Europe. Older adults living alone are most lonely, older adults living with a partner are least lonely. Coresidence provides protection, but not to the same degree as a partner. In both co-resident and independent households there is a greater likelihood of being involved in support given to adult children than in support received from adult children. In both East and West European countries, older adults who are primarily on the receiving side are most lonely.CONCLUSIONS
A better explanation of older adult loneliness is obtained if the direction of supportive exchanges with adult children is considered than if only living arrangements are considered.
New From the GAO
New GAO Reports and Testimonies
Source: Government Accountability Office
+ Reports
1. Bus Rapid Transit: Projects Improve Transit Service and Can Contribute to Economic Development. GAO-12-811, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-811
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592974.pdf
2. Information Technology: DHS Needs to Further Define and Implement Its New Governance Process. GAO-12-818, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-818
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592930.pdf
3. Overseas Rightsizing: State Has Improved the Consistency of Its Approach, but Does Not Follow Up on Its Recommendations. GAO-12-799, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-799
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592966.pdf
4. Retirement Security: Women Still Face Challenges. GAO-12-699, July 19.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-699
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592727.pdf
5. Telecommunications: FCC Has Reformed the High-Cost Program, but Oversight and Management Could be Improved. GAO-12-738, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-738
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592958.pdf
6. United Nations Renovations: Best Practices Could Enhance Future Cost Estimates. GAO-12-795, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-795
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592922.pdf
+ Testimonies
1. Grants Management: Improving the Timeliness of Grant Closeouts by Federal Agencies and Other Grants Management Challenges, by Stanley J. Czerwinski, director, strategic issues, before the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security, Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. GAO-12-704T, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-704T
Highlights – http://www.gao.gov/assets/600/592996.pdf
2. Higher Education: Improved Tax Information Could Help Pay for College, by James R. White, director, strategic issues, and George A. Scott, director, education, workforce, and income security issues, before the Senate Committee on Finance. GAO-12-863T, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-863T
3. Retirement Security: Older Women Remain at Risk, by Barbara D. Bovbjerg, managing director, education, workforce, and income security, before the Senate Special Committee on Aging. GAO-12-825T, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-825T
4. Medicare Advantage: Quality Bonus Payment Demonstration Has Design Flaws and Raises Legal Concerns, by James Cosgrove, director, health care, and Edda Emmanuelli-Perez, managing associate general counsel, before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. GAO-12-964T, July 25.
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-964T
Own-to-Rent Transitions and Changes in Housing Equity for Older Americans,’ and ‘Health Plan Choice: Findings from the 2011 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey
Own-to-Rent Transitions and Changes in Housing Equity for Older Americans,’ and ‘Health Plan Choice: Findings from the 2011 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey
Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute
Own-to-Rent Transitions and Changes in Housing Equity for Older Americans
- Owning is the most common housing arrangement for older Americans: At age 65, more than 8 in 10 Americans report living in houses they own.
- The transition rate from home ownership to renting is 3 percent at age 50, bottoming out at 1.6 percent at age 65. However, these transition rates increase after age 85, reaching a peak of 4.7 percent at age 90.
- Death of a spouse is the most common factor associated with a transition from owning to renting. The next common factor is a drop in household income.
- Median household income for those between ages 50 and 64 who continue to own their home is $79,758, while those who shift from owning to renting in that same age group have a median household income of $53,520.
- Ownership rates are very different for couples and singles, but don’t change a lot across owners’ ages. The home ownership rate hovers around 90 percent for couples and 60 percent for singles.
Health Plan Choice: Findings from the 2011 EBRI/MGA Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey
- Nearly one-half (47 percent) of covered workers had a choice of health plans in 2011.
- Forty-two percent of large firms offered two or more choices of health plans, compared with 15 percent of smaller firms. Half of consumer-driven health plan enrollees reported that they chose that offering because of the lower premium, while 45 percent reported that the opportunity to save money in the account for future years was a primary reason.
- Among individuals with traditional health coverage, 39 percent cited the good network of providers and 32 percent reported the low out-of-pocket costs as the main reasons for enrolling in the plan.
Nightmare on Main Street: Older Americans and the Mortgage Market Crisis
Nightmare on Main Street: Older Americans and the Mortgage Market Crisis
Source: AARP
This is the first study to measure the progression of the mortgage crisis and its effect on people age 50 and older. Based on an analysis of nationwide loan-level data for the years 2007 to 2011, this study examines loan performance based on borrower age, loan type, and borrower demographics.
Despite the perception that older Americans are more housing secure than younger people, millions of older Americans are carrying more mortgage debt than ever before, and more than three million are at risk of losing their homes. As of December 2011, approximately 3.5 million loans of people age 50+ were underwater—meaning homeowners owe more than their home is worth, so they have no equity; 600,000 loans of people age 50+ were in foreclosure, and another 625,000 loans were 90 or more days delinquent. From 2007 to 2011, more than 1.5 million older Americans lost their homes as a result of the mortgage crisis.
To date, public policy programs designed to stem the progression of the foreclosure crisis have been inadequate, and programs that focus on the unique needs of older Americans are needed.
Prevention of Falls in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement
Prevention of Falls in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement
Source: Annals of Internal Medicine
Description:
Update of the 1996 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation statement on counseling to prevent household and recreational injuries, including falls.Methods:
The USPSTF reviewed new evidence on the effectiveness and harms of primary care–relevant interventions to prevent falls in community-dwelling older adults. The interventions were grouped into 5 main categories: multifactorial clinical assessment (with or without direct intervention), clinical management (with or without screening), clinical education or behavioral counseling, home hazard modification, and exercise or physical therapy.Recommendations:
The USPSTF recommends exercise or physical therapy and vitamin D supplementation to prevent falls in community-dwelling adults aged 65 years or older who are at increased risk for falls. (Grade B recommendation)The USPSTF does not recommend automatically performing an in-depth multifactorial risk assessment in conjunction with comprehensive management of identified risks to prevent falls in community-dwelling adults aged 65 years or older because the likelihood of benefit is small. In determining whether this service is appropriate in individual cases, patients and clinicians should consider the balance of benefits and harms on the basis of the circumstances of prior falls, comorbid medical conditions, and patient values. (Grade C recommendation)
Grandparenting and mothers’ labour force participation: A comparative analysis using the Generations and Gender Survey
It is well known that the provision of public childcare plays an important role for women labour force participation and its availability varies tremendously across countries. In many countries, informal childcare is also important and typically provided by the grandparents, but its role on mothers’ employment is not yet well understood. Understanding the relationship between labour supply decisions and grandparental childcare is complex. While the provision of grandparental childcare is clearly a function of the social and institutional context of a country, it also depends on family preferences, which are typically unobserved in surveys.OBJECTIVEWe analyze the role of informal childcare provided by grandparents on mothers’ labour force participation keeping unobserved preferences into account.METHODSBivariate probit models with instrumental variables are estimated on data from seven countries (Bulgaria, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Russia and The Netherlands) drawn from the Generations and Gender Survey.RESULTSWe find that only in some countries mothers’ employment is positively and significantly associated with grandparents providing childcare. In other countries, once we control for unobserved preferences, we do not find this effect.CONCLUSIONSThe role of grandparents is an important element to reconcile work and family for women in some countries. Our results show the importance of considering family preferences and country differences when studying the relationship between grandparental childcare and mothers’ labour supply.COMMENTSOur results are consistent with previous research on this topic. However, differently from previous studies, we conduct separate analyses by country and show that the effect of grandparental childcare varies considerably. The fact that we also include in the analyses Bulgaria, Hungary, Russia and Georgia is an important novelty as there are no studies on this issue for these countries.
Family Caregivers Online
Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project
Thirty percent of U.S. adults help a loved one with personal needs or household chores, managing finances, arranging for outside services, or visiting regularly to see how they are doing. Most are caring for an adult, such as a parent or spouse, but a small group cares for a child living with a disability or long-term health issue. The population breaks down as follows:
24% of U.S. adults care for an adult3% of U.S. adults care for a child with significant health issues
3% of U.S. adults care for both an adult and a child
70% of U.S. adults do not currently provide care to a loved one
Eight in ten caregivers (79%) have access to the internet. Of those, 88% look online for health information, outpacing other internet users on every health topic included in our survey, from looking up certain treatments to hospital ratings to end-of-life decisions.
The Mental Health and Substance Use Workforce for Older Adults: In Whose Hands?
The Mental Health and Substance Use Workforce for Older Adults: In Whose Hands?
Source: Institute of Medicine
From press release:
Millions of baby boomers will likely face difficulties getting diagnoses and treatment for mental health conditions and substance abuse problems unless there is a major effort to significantly boost the number of health professionals and other service providers able to supply this care as the population ages, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. The magnitude of the problem is so great that no single approach or isolated changes in a few federal agencies or programs will address it, said the committee that wrote the report.
The report calls for a redesign of Medicare and Medicaid payment rules to guarantee coverage of counseling, care management, and other types of services crucial for treating mental health conditions and substance use problems so that clinicians are willing to provide this care. Organizations that accredit health and social service professional schools and license providers should ensure that all who see older patients — including primary care physicians, nurses, physicians’ assistants, and social workers — are able to recognize signs and symptoms of geriatric mental health conditions, neglect, and substance misuse and abuse and provide at least basic care, the committee said.
Top leaders of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services need to promote national attention to building a work force of sufficient size that is trained in geriatric mental health and substance abuse care. They should ensure that all the department’s relevant agencies are devoting sufficient attention and resources to these conditions.
How Insights on 50+ Adults Can be Useful to Local Businesses
How Insights on 50+ Adults Can be Useful to Local Businesses
Source: AARP
This presentation examines current trends that affect older adults as well as demographics, life events, activities, and attitudes of the 50+.
Many trends affect the behaviors and attitudes of 50+ adults. While consumer confidence is slowly increasing, personal savings rates are higher than pre-recession levels. Unemployment rates are slightly lower for older adults; however, older adults remain unemployed for longer periods of time than their younger counterparts. Older adults are experiencing higher out of pocket health care costs and as a result many are not going to doctors or health care professionals for treatment as often. About as many older adults live in multigenerational households as those who live alone. Although fewer older adults use technology compared to their younger counterparts technology use among older adults is on the rise.
There are approximately 100 million 50+ adults and this population is projected to increase to 160 million by 2050. Not only is the 50+ population going to grow in size but it will also become more diverse as both the African American and Hispanic 50+ populations greatly increase by 2050.
Older adults are most interested in spending their personal and leisure time with friends and family and doing activities that center around their hobbies, travel, entertaining, reading, cooking, and physical and brain fitness. Older adults are also spending their personal time volunteering in activities that involve helping people with disabilities, distributing food, and fundraising for a good cause.
Older Populations to Exceed Children in Most World Regions by 2050, Census Bureau Reports
Older Populations to Exceed Children in Most World Regions by 2050, Census Bureau Reports
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
The world’s inhabitants in 2012 are an older mix of people than was the case a decade ago, driven by declining fertility and increasing life expectancy. According to new U.S. Census Bureau population projections, by midcentury most world regions will resemble Europe, which in 2005 became the first major world region where the population 65 and older outnumbered those younger than 15.
Northern America, which includes Canada and the United States, will have joined Europe in this historic reversal of age group sizes by 2050, as will Asia, Latin America and Oceania (which includes Australia and New Zealand). Moreover, China is projected to move from having nearly twice as many people in the younger age group than in the older one in 2012, to the opposite situation by midcentury.
These projections come from an update of the Census Bureau’s International Data Base, which includes estimates by age and sex to 100 years and older for countries and other areas with populations of 5,000 or more and provides information on population size and growth, mortality, fertility and net migration. Since April 2012, users of the International Data Base have been able to obtain population in single years of age, allowing them to calculate country-specific populations in particular age groups (e.g., population at selected ages younger than 5, or adolescents).
Between now and the middle of the 21st century, global population will continue aging. The percentage of population 65 and older will more than double, from 8 percent today to nearly 17 percent in 2050, carrying with it well-established changes in the mix of communicable and noncommunicable disease patterns in populations, health care burden, pension systems, the composition and character of the labor force, and other economic variables, such as savings and consumption patterns.
One world region — Africa — will continue to have populations younger than 15 that are much larger than those 65 and older, but even there, the balance will have shifted toward the older group.
Senior Immigrants in the United States
Senior Immigrants in the United States
Source: Migration Policy Institute
Following a steady decline between 1960 and 1990, the number of older immigrants (those age 65 and over) in the United States almost doubled between 1990 and 2010, from 2.7 million to nearly 5 million. These seniors now account for 12 percent of the 40 million immigrants in the United States — a share that is much lower than the historical high. In 1960, 33 percent of the nation’s 9.7 million immigrants were 65 or older, mostly Europeans who arrived during the early 20th century wave of immigration.
Since the 1965 revisions to the US immigrant admission system, which expanded the number and diversified immigrants’ countries of origin, the vast majority of newcomers have been younger, working-age adults. As a result, the proportion of elderly among immigrants dropped sharply in the post-1965 period: from 33 percent in 1960 to 11 percent in 2000. However, the older-age immigrant population has been rebounding for two main reasons.
The first is demographic: an increasing number of working-age adults who arrived during the 1980s and the 1990s are aging into the 65 and older group. Their numbers, while still small, are projected to increase over time following overall immigration patterns, especially given the post-recession slowdown in new immigration flows.
The second reason is that once immigrants become US citizens, they can sponsor their parents to come to the United States. As the number of younger immigrants who naturalize increases, the number of older parents eligible to immigrate will also increase.
Today, older immigrants account for 12 percent of the 40.4 million elderly in the United States and for 12 percent of the 40 million immigrant population.
Community Design and the Incidence of Crashes Involving Pedestrians and Motorists Aged 75 and Older
Community Design and the Incidence of Crashes Involving Pedestrians and Motorists Aged 75 and Older (PDF)
Source: Texas Transportation Institute
Contemporary community design practice has focused on strategies intended to make communities safe for families with children. Comparatively little attention has been given to its effects on older adults. This study employs a series of negative binomial regression models to understand how urban form may affect the incidence of total and killed-or-severely-injured (KSI) crashes involving older drivers and pedestrians. Intersections, strip commercial uses, big-box stores, and arterial thoroughfares pose crash hazards for older motorists, while big-box stores and arterials are problematic for older pedestrians. A network of lower-speed streets was found to be associated with reductions in crashes involving older motorists and pedestrians.
See: Strip Malls and Big Box Stores Linked to Increased Traffic Deaths Among Seniors (Atlantic Cities)
The Smell of Age: Perception and Discrimination of Body Odors of Different Ages
The Smell of Age: Perception and Discrimination of Body Odors of Different Ages
Source: PLoS ONE
Our natural body odor goes through several stages of age-dependent changes in chemical composition as we grow older. Similar changes have been reported for several animal species and are thought to facilitate age discrimination of an individual based on body odors, alone. We sought to determine whether humans are able to discriminate between body odor of humans of different ages. Body odors were sampled from three distinct age groups: Young (20–30 years old), Middle-age (45–55), and Old-age (75–95) individuals. Perceptual ratings and age discrimination performance were assessed in 41 young participants. There were significant differences in ratings of both intensity and pleasantness, where body odors from the Old-age group were rated as less intense and less unpleasant than body odors originating from Young and Middle-age donors. Participants were able to discriminate between age categories, with body odor from Old-age donors mediating the effect also after removing variance explained by intensity differences. Similarly, participants were able to correctly assign age labels to body odors originating from Old-age donors but not to body odors originating from other age groups. This experiment suggests that, akin to other animals, humans are able to discriminate age based on body odor alone and that this effect is mediated mainly by body odors emitted by individuals of old age.
The General Age of Leadership: Older-Looking Presidential Candidates Win Elections during War
As nation-state leaders age they increasingly engage in inter-state militarized disputes yet in industrialized societies a steady decrease in testosterone associated with aging is observed – which suggests a decrease in dominance behavior. The current paper points out that from modern societies to Old World monkeys increasing both in age and social status encourages dominant strategies to maintain acquired rank. Moreover, it is argued this consistency has shaped an implicit prototype causing followers to associate older age with dominance leadership. It is shown that (i) faces of older leaders are preferred during intergroup conflict and (ii) morphing U.S. Presidential candidates to appear older or younger has an overriding effect on actual election outcomes. This indicates that democratic voting can be systematically adjusted by activating innate biases. These findings appear to create a new line of research regarding the biology of leadership and contextual cues of age.
See: Older-looking presidential candidates preferred during wartime (EurekAlert!)
Aging Today: Family Caregiving & the Older Worker – Fact Sheet
Aging Today: Family Caregiving & the Older Worker – Fact Sheet
- According to a 2004 AARP survey, “35% of Boomers have been or are responsible for the care of their elderly parent, up nine points since 1998.”
- A 2008 study from the Sloan Center on Aging & Work of couples and careers “reveals that one in two older workers (those aged 50 and above) have a dependent child in the household and one in five of these workers have an adult child in the household.”
- According to a 2011 analysis of American Community Survey data, “more than one-third (36%) of the 915,000 grandparents ages 60 and older who are caring for their grandchildren were in the labor force in 2010.”
