Social Security: Older Americans aging well and living well too

By Jim Glenn

May was Older Americans Month, and Social Security joins the Administration on Aging and other organizations around the nation in celebrating the occasion.

The theme for this year’s observance was “Aging Well, Living Well.” This theme was chosen to recognize the fact older Americans are living longer, healthier and more productive lives. As the Administration on Aging has noted, “older people are not only adding years to their lives, they are also improving the quality of their lives.”

While older Americans lead very diverse lives and many continue to work, the truth is that about 4 of 5 men over age 65 and 9 of 10 women over age 65 are retired. Happiness in retirement can depend in large measure on whether retirees have enough money to enjoy themselves and live well.

Those of us at Social Security are proud of the role we play in providing an economic foundation for older Americans. Social Security pays monthly retirement benefits to more than 32 million retired workers and their family members. And more than 9 in 10 Americans who are age 65 or older get Social Security benefits.

The average monthly Social Security benefit for a retired worker is a little more than $900. The average monthly benefit for a retired worker and his or her spouse is about $1,525. Older Americans Month might also be a good time to look to the future and to the prospects of coming generations for living well.

A highly-respected 2004 retirement survey said about 60 percent of today’s workers do not expect their standard of living to decline when they retire. However, the same survey reported that 45 percent of all workers have total assets (excluding their homes) of less than $25,000.

If you are not yet retired, you should be making plans now to supplement Social Security benefits with pensions, savings and other investments. A good place to start reviewing your future retirement income needs is your Social Security Statement. You get one each year about three months before your birthday.

The statement tells you what you might expect to get from Social Security. Then you can make plans to supplement your Social Security benefits with pensions, savings and other investments.

For more information, you can visit the financial planning section of our Web site at www.socialsecurity.gov/planners.