Answer: False - The majority of older adults have incomes above the poverty level. However, this is somewhat deceptive as the Federal Poverty Line is lower for individuals 65 and over than for those under sixty-five. Currently, we have the wealthiest but also the poorest older adult population in U.S. history.
For more information about demographics in the United States, visit the Administration on Aging's Profile of Older Americans website. Median income per month for in 2006:
Men: $1958
Women: $1134
The figures above represent the median incomes per month for indivuals 65 or older based on gender. The median means that 50 percent of the individuals in each category have less than the median income per month. For example, over half of older women had an income of less than $1134 per month in 2006.
From the Profile of Older Americans:
PovertyOne of every fourteen (7.0%) elderly Whites was poor in 2006, compared to 22.7% of elderly African-Americans, 12.0% of Asians, and 19.4% of elderly Hispanics.
. Older women had a higher poverty rate (11.5%) than older men (6.6%) in 2006. Older persons living alone were much more likely to be poor (16.9%) than were older persons living with families (5.6%). The highest poverty rates were experienced among Hispanic women (40.5%) who lived alone and also by older Black women (37.5%) who lived alone.
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