Most older women spent their working lives behind the economic curve. They were typically paid less than men when at work and more likely to provide family care that reduced employment opportunities.
Their economic situation doesn’t improve in later life. Lower Social Security and pension benefits, the result of working and earning less over decades, and the fact that women are more likely to live longer than men just extend that gender disadvantage into older age and often make it worse.
A new report by the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts Boston uses the Elder Index™to demonstrate the depth and scope of economic disadvantage experienced by older women living alone across the United States. It is documented in every state in the nation and only increases with age.
“Life-long patterns of inequality in work experiences and wealth accumulation are behind a substantial gender disparity in retirement economic security,” said Jan Mutchler, the report’s lead author and a professor of gerontology at UMass Boston. “The consequences of that disparity affect so many older women who routinely face hard choices about basic expenses they simply can’t afford.” Continue reading
This article is one in a series of stories about how people across the country are using the Elder Index to understand the true cost of living for older adults and its economic implications. If you know someone who would like to receive information about these stories, send us a note at 
Older adults in every one of America’s large metropolitan areas face serious challenges affording their local cost of living. But the scale of economic insecurity varies dramatically, depending on what city those older adults call home.
