Study Finds: Retirement Age Same As A Decade Ago
Also, Boomers No More Healthy Than Other Generations
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Even with an economy that has been more volatile than ever before, and advances in healthcare have enabled people to live longer than in the past, seniors are still retiring at about the same age, and they’re no more healthy than other generations
According to new research from the Center for Retirement Research, today’s average retirement ages of 64 for men and 62 for women are about the same as where they were a decade ago, suggesting that some factors spurring the trend toward working longer since the 1980s may have exhausted themselves.
After nearly a century of decline, work activity among older people began to increase in the 1980s in response to a variety of factors. The report’s authors attribute the increase to perceived benefits from Social Security, improved health and longevity, education (people with more education tend to work longer), less physically demanding jobs, joint decision making between spouses, decline of retiree health insurance and non-monetary factors.
“Since working longer is the key to a secure retirement, the labor force activity of people in their 50s and 60s is a crucial issue,” the report’s authors write. They say the recent leveling off of the average retirement age suggest that these earlier incentives for working longer are no longer having a substantial impact: Social Security’s delayed retirement credit is fully phased in; the shift from defined benefit to defined contribution plans is nearly complete in the private sector; delay due to the availability of Medicare has played its role; education is no longer increasing; improvements in health may have stabilized; and increases in longevity may not be significant.
Another study indicates baby boomers are not necessarily healthier than previous generations, according to a new article published in the health policy journal Milbank Quarterly. While the generation overall has better education, higher income and lower smoking rates, they also have the negative impact of increasing obesity and related health problems.
The study of 8,750 individuals looked at four generations in Canada, where currently almost one-third of the population is between the ages of 46 and 65. Researchers examined whether the impact of the aging baby boomers on the nation’s health system might be larger or smaller than other generations. Baby boomers were the first generation to have better access to health care and services such as immunizations and antibiotics. But the researchers found no evidence that boomers were any healthier than previous or post generations. Obesity rates in Canada, the United States and other developed countries have been increasing over the last several decades, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Obesity is also linked to development of diseases like diabetes and heart disease.
The researchers noted that while people in the United States and Canada are living longer, they’re developing more chronic diseases and disabling conditions that are often related to obesity. They called for more targeted campaigns focusing on the effects of obesity and promoting healthy weight.
Alternatives for Seniors is a print and online directory that specifically caters to the housing and personal care concerns of senior citizens and their families. Need assistance locating a senior residence or care? Call our Senior Specialists at (888) WE-ASSIST (888-932-7747) or visit the Alternatives for Seniors website to begin searching for the perfect home or care for you or your loved ones. Also, be sure to join our Facebook community and follow us on Twitter and Pinterest.
BLOG Date: Thursday, April 16, 2015
Writer: Ryan Allen