Cal-EESI Press Coverage - Business Street Online
Finance/Legal
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Tough Times for Fresno's Seniors
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New county-specific data reveals true impact of state budget cuts on elderly.
Business Street Staff - Feb 26, 2008 |
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Sacramento, CA- The groundbreaking Elder Economic Security StandardT Index (Elder Standard Index), released today at a Senate Subcommittee Hearing in Sacramento, shows that the Federal Poverty Line (FPL) covers less than half the basic costs incurred by California adults aged 65 and older. Yet the FPL is used to determine income eligibility for most public programs, as well as state and federal resource allocations to local communities.
According to the Elder Standard Index, the basic annual cost of living for a retired older adult, who is in good health and living in rental housing in Fresno County is $18,870, or $25,661 for a single elder with a mortgage. For an older couple renting in Fresno County, the basic cost of living is $27,735, or $34,526 for a couple with a mortgage. Even seniors who have worked their entire lives and are now living on incomes comprised of Social Security, retirement accounts and pensions are finding that they are unable to cover the most basic expenses included in the Elder Standard Index. In 2007, the FPL was a mere $10,210 for a single elderly person and only $13,690 for an older couple. "Knowing the true cost of living for older adults is vital if we are to ensure that elder Californians can meet basic needs and maintain their independence," said Steven P. Wallace, Professor and Associate Director of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, who calculated the Elder Standard Index for California. "The Elder Standard Index is a new way to assess income adequacy for older adults that is designed to ultimately replace the Federal Poverty Line in policy and practice." The Federal Poverty Line is a four-decades-old, geographically one-size-fits-all measure based solely on the cost of the basic food budget needed to meet minimum nutritional requirements. The FPL is lower for elders than middle-aged adults, reflecting an inaccurate assumption that elders need less to live on than younger people. The FPL fails to take into account housing and transportation costs and, most importantly, medical costs, which can be particularly debilitating for the elderly. The Elder Standard Index methodology, originally developed by D.C.-based Wider Opportunities for Women (WOW) and the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Massachusetts-Boston, uses widely accepted and credible national and state data sources such as the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The UCLA Center for Health Policy Research used geographically relevant data for each county in California to calculate the California data, reflecting local market rates for items such as housing, health care, transportation and long-term care. The Elder Standard Index is the only elder-specific financial measure of its kind. "This new data provides an accurate tool with which legislators can evaluate existing and future policy decisions, direct service providers can assess their communities' unique needs and secure necessary funding, advocates can better express their priorities, and individuals can plan for retirement," said Susie Smith, Director of the California Elder Economic Security Initiative at the Insight Center for Community Economic Development. |