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In the last few weeks, I have come face-toface with assisting a parent with end-of-life issues.
I have concluded two things: I don’t want to get old and I don’t want to be poor. Our elderly poor are dealing with insurmountable issues that they did not plan for.
Our “Silent Generation” elders are in the twilight years of life, but for many it is more pitch dark than twilight. Most of them worked extremely hard for very little pay. A large number of them paid their bills, put what they could in savings and depended on their pensions and Social Security to see them through.
What they couldn’t predict, however, was how much prices would escalate in the future and how what had seemed a decent amount of money in their working years would disappear in a heartbeat when dealing with healthcare costs, taxes, and general inflation.
Once upon a time being a millionaire would get you anywhere and you could afford a pretty cushy retirement. Today, unless you retire with at least 1.5 million dollars in assets and have it legally protected, you are in grave danger.
A large number of Baby Boomers now find themselves in the same predicament. A relatively small percentage of Americans retire with one million dollars or more in their retirement accounts. In fact, it is generally estimated that less than 10% of Americans reach this goal. Other estimates suggest that percentage is closer to 4.7% or even lower.
Enormous healthcare costs often blast through what senior citizens are able to amass, leading them eventually to file for Medicaid. In March, 2025, there were 71,258,215 people enrolled in Medicaid nationally.
Medicaid participants are on a slow boat to China when it comes to longer-term care. While skilled nursing and assisted living facilities cater to their wealthier clients, the Medicaid patients find an extremely lower standard of living. Those needing higher levels of care that often cannot be provided by their families find that there are a grossly limited number of Medicaid beds available to them. In fact, many of the newer facilities do not even offer Medicaid rooms and if they do, seniors are often forced into shared bedrooms and bathrooms, in cramped surroundings, able to have room for only a few pictures or treasured trinkets to call their own. And for that jail-cell environment, they are turning over their Social Security checks to pay for room and board and given $52.00 to last them a month.
Most facilities advertise that they offer outings and short trips to the residents, but how many of those outings can be afforded on $52 a MONTH? My dad told me recently that he finally went on one of the offered outings to a restaurant in a near-by town and it cost him $18; the sad part is that he didn’t even like the place!
So, after busting your hump for 40-50 years, paying taxes, supporting your community and hoping to live out your sunset years in peace and quiet, you end up like THIS?
I am appalled and terrified as I realize that I could well end up this way, not because I didn’t save and invest throughout my adult years, but just because I am a victim of the times and will be joined by millions of others.
If it weren’t for all the rules and regulations, I would like to erect my own Senior Compound, where people can be treated as people, not patients or residents, but people who deserve honor and respect.
All of this to say that we really need to evaluate our moral values in this country. I am incensed beyond reason that people like Jeff Bezos and his bubbly bride will spend $52 million dollars on a wedding…one DAY that could feed the poor, house the homeless, build cost-effective housing and care for the elderly, the homeless and the poor.
It makes me want to cancel my Amazon account….
‘Til Next Time!
Mrs. B.
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