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High U.S. Inflation Persists Economic insecurity is upending the lives of millions of seniors

author:Bright Net

High U.S. Inflation Persists Economic insecurity is upending the lives of millions of seniors

China Daily Network on September 8, according to the United States Columbia Broadcasting Corporation (CBS) on the 7th published an article reported that as the soaring housing costs and inflation in the United States reduce the value of fixed income, economic insecurity is subverting the lives of millions of elderly people.

High U.S. Inflation Persists Economic insecurity is upending the lives of millions of seniors

Screenshot of the report

Across the United States, older adults who, until recently, were able to successfully manage limited budgets are increasingly anxious and distressed. Some lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Others face unsustainable rent increases and the prospect of losing their homes. Still others have suffered severe price shocks at grocery stores.

The Elder Index, developed by researchers at the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts Boston, which measures the cost of aging, shows that 54 percent of older women living alone earn less than what is needed to pay for basic expenses. For single men, the figure is 45%.

High U.S. Inflation Persists Economic insecurity is upending the lives of millions of seniors

Video screenshots

In the report, three elderly women from Maryland, Virginia and Alabama shared their unexpected stories. These stories illustrate how the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic consequences, natural disasters, and domestic abuse, among other unexpected circumstances, can lead to unexpected instability in Americans' later life, even for those who have worked hard for decades.

Rents rise 9.2 percent The 79-year-old was forced to move out of the apartment he had lived in for 33 years

Bettye Cohen, 79, from Maryland, has lived in an apartment for 33 years, but now she has to move because the building's new owner is renovating all the apartments, and the monthly rent is more than $1,800 to $2,500 to $2,500. This is a trend that affects all age groups in the United States: Rents have risen by 9.2 percent this year due to landlords' response to high demand.

Cohen retired in 2007 and her current monthly income is $2426. In addition to rent, Cohen estimates she spends $200 to $240 a month on food, $165 on the phone and the Internet, $25 on Medicare or more for incidentals, such as cleaning products and toiletries, which don't include non-day expenses. Cohen estimates that if forced to relocate, the cost of relocation will exceed $1,000.

Cohen had looked for apartments in her area, but many were in smaller buildings with no elevators and were inconvenient for people with severe arthritis. The waiting list for senior rooms waits for two years. "I'm in pain," Cohen said. "I often wake up in the middle of the night because my brain can't turn off. Everything is so overwhelming. ”

The 61-year-old earns his living by doing odd jobs

Carrie England, 61, thought she would grow old in a three-bedroom apartment in Winchester, Virginia. She said she bought the house with her partner in 1999. But that dream was shattered in January 2021.

Around that time, England was surprised to find that her name was not on the deed of the house where she had been living. She and her partner ended their long-term relationship in 2009 but still live together as friends. Things changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, with her ex-partner stopping work and her work as a food and hotel services specialist coming to an abrupt end. "His personality has changed a lot," she said, "and I started experiencing emotional abuse." ”

England moved to Ashbourne, Virginia, in early 2021, and she rented an apartment for $1511 a month. Counting utility bills and garbage removal fees, the total cost is more than $1700 per month. "Life has become too expensive. I lost everything and had a nervous breakdown every day because I didn't know how to survive such a high cost of living. ”

England now earns around $2,000 a month and she works odd jobs to make ends meet whenever she gets the chance. She knows her housing costs are unsustainable and has put her name on a waiting list for more than a dozen affordable or public housing. But it is almost impossible for her to see progress in this regard in the short term.

Food prices will rise by more than 10% The elderly without pensions cannot afford it

A tornado that swept through Central Florida in 2007 destroyed the home of Elaine Ross, 65. By the time she found out she wasn't covered enough, it was too late.

To make ends meet, Ross started working two jobs: a hairdresser and a customer service representative at a convenience store. She bought a new home with her new husband, Douglas Ross, a mechanic. In the years since, in an effort to control diabetes and pain, Ross quit in 2016 to apply for Social Security disability insurance and now pays $919 a month. Her husband stopped working in 2019 because of back discomfort and he could no longer meet the requirements of the job. Neither had a pension, and their meager savings were depleted with various emergency expenses, and they sold their houses.

They now live in Alabama and rent $540 a month. Other regular expenses include $200 a month for trucks and gasoline, $340 medicare, Part B premiums, $200 for electricity, $100 for drugs, $70 for phone calls, and hundreds of dollars for food. Ross said: "All this inflation is literally killing us." The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects domestic food prices to rise 10 to 11 percent this year.

To save money, Ross has been turning off its air conditioning during peak hours, even though summer temperatures can reach more than 90 degrees Celsius (32 degrees Celsius) or higher. "It's terrible," she continued. "I know I'm not the only old man who has had this situation, I've lived my whole life, done all the right things, and got into what I'm in now."

(Compiler: Ma Rui)

Source: China Daily

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