Older women anxious about finances in retirement: GAO report
Retired women in 14 focus groups are worried about rising health care costs
Anxiety about financial security in retirement is common among older women, according to a report by the GAO.
Based the results of 14 focus groups with women generally over the age of 70 in nine locations around the country, the report found that every group was concerned about rising health care costs. Each group also discussed how a lack of personal finance education adversely affected their retirement security.
Women in all groups, a large portion of whom were widows, also equated financial security in retirement with being able to maintain their independence, the GAO said in its report.
Many women expressed concerns about the future of Social Security and Medicare benefits, and the costs of housing. They also cited a range of experiences that hindered their retirement security, such as divorce or leaving the workforce before they planned to.
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