Shoring Up the Nation’s Fraying Social Safety Net

Last week, AARP Foundation announced its analysis of newly released Census data on poverty, income and health insurance coverage in 2025.

“At first glance, it sounded like good news,” observed AARP Foundation President Claire Casey during an 18-minute virtual media briefing on Sept. 24. “Poverty fell, and household income hit a record high, but the headlines can be deceiving and not reflect what is happening to older Americans,” she said.

Casey stressed to attending journalists that the key takeaway was that senior poverty, measured using the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM), has risen for the fifth consecutive year, a trend not seen by any other age group. The SPM accounts for unavoidable costs like housing and health care.

According to the SPM, more than 10 million people age 65 and older are living in poverty, a number that has jumped roughly 45% since 2019. “And for perspective, we’re talking about an incredibly low bar. For a single renter, the poverty line starts at just over $19,000 a year,” Casey said.

Between 2020 and 2025, the percentage of Americans 65 and older living in poverty increased from 9.4% to 15.4%, according to the SPM, the largest increase for any age group measured.

Casey also highlighted the continuing economic disparities facing older women, whose poverty rate is about 17%. She attributed this, in part, to lifetime inequalities, including the gender pay gap and career interruptions for child care and elder care.

Taking a Look at Poverty Before Retirement

To better understand why senior poverty keeps rising, Casey argues that we have to look at what happens before people turn 65.

While discussing the newly released Census data, Casey compared it with findings from AARP Foundation’s new Economic Security Monitor, a quarterly survey tracking financial stability among adults age 50 and older living on low incomes.

The latest Monitor found significant hardships among adults ages 50 to 64, a group traditionally considered to be in their peak earning years.

Nearly one-third reported running out of food before they had money to buy more, 70% said their household expenses had increased in just the last three months, and one-third could not cover an emergency expense of more than $100.

Many assume that employment in their 50s brings peak financial stability, but for millions of Americans preparing to retire, the numbers tell a different story.

More than 7 million people between ages 50 and 64, about one in eight, are already living in poverty, Casey pointed out.

“That’s our warning sign. If people are already struggling this much before retirement, we know where they are headed,” Casey said, noting that “we have to act now or senior poverty will keep rising.”

“But what’s even more troubling is that you don’t have to be in poverty at 55 to age into it,” Casey warned. An individual can work full-time throughout a career, do everything right, and still end up impoverished in retirement. Only one in four older adults with low incomes has access to a workplace retirement plan, she noted.

Casey also pointed to problems facing low-income workers between ages 50 and 64, particularly those who lose jobs or work in low-paying occupations because of age discrimination or early health complications. They are more likely to experience long-term unemployment, and only 10% will find a new job with equal or higher pay, she said.

Programs exist to help seniors facing poverty, but getting those benefits can be difficult. “Older adults miss out on an estimated $58 billion in benefits each year because the system is hard to access,” Casey said.

“As Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid requirements change, I worry that eligible people, especially those 55 to 64, will lose access,” Casey said, stressing the importance of maintaining these lifeline benefits and helping states deliver them more effectively.

“Each year since 2020, more and more older adults have fallen into abject poverty,” Casey said. “Today’s release confirms what we see every day in our work—that rising prices, an eroding social safety net, and diminishing access to quality jobs are creating extreme precarity for older adults in our communities.”

Advocacy Groups Weigh In

Max Richtman, President and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, says the Census numbers underscore the need to protect Social Security as Congress considers how to address the program’s long-term financial shortfall.

“The 2025 Census poverty data and AARP analysis make one fact unmistakable: retirees and future retirees are being pushed into deeper economic insecurity,” Richtman said. “Cutting earned benefits would intensify the crisis,” he cautioned.

The National Committee believes Congress should require wealthy Americans to contribute more to extend Social Security’s solvency while improving benefits for current and future generations.

Here in Rhode Island, advocates say the numbers tell a similar story.

Carol Anne Costa, Executive Director of the Senior Agenda Coalition of Rhode Island (SACRI), points to Census data, the Elder Index, and United Way of Rhode Island’s ALICE report as evidence that many older Rhode Islanders struggle to pay for housing, food, health care, utilities, and transportation.

“The data tells a troubling story,” Costa said. “The share of older Rhode Island households living below the federal poverty level rose from 8.9 percent in 2019 to 12.3 percent in 2024. This is not an abstract statistic, she said, noting it represents older adults having to make impossible choices between paying rent, filling prescriptions, keeping the heat on, or buying groceries.

Costa added that one in four older Rhode Island households has income below $25,000 a year. According to the 2026 Elder Index figures cited by SACRI, an older adult renter in good health needs approximately $34,152 annually to meet basic expenses. An older couple in poor health who own their home needs approximately $45,996.

But poverty statistics alone do not tell the whole story.

“The federal poverty measure does not capture the full extent of hardship facing older adults,” said Maureen Maigret, SACRI Policy Advisor. She pointed to the recent United Way of Rhode Island ALICE report, which found that 53% of older Rhode Islanders do not have enough income to meet necessities.

“This situation is getting worse, not better,” Maigret said. “Rhode Island must treat affordability impacting older adults as an urgent public policy priority.”

SACRI is urging state policymakers to move forward with its Older Adult Affordability Agenda, beginning with eliminating the asset limit for the Medicare Savings Program.

“Eliminating the asset limit would allow thousands more eligible older Rhode Islanders and people with disabilities to qualify for help with their Medicare Part B premiums,” Maigret said. For eligible individuals, she noted, that can mean savings of at least $2,400 each year because the federal government pays the Part B premium.

Costa calls it a practical solution that would put money back into the pockets of low-income older adults while bringing additional federal dollars into Rhode Island.

The Economic Progress Institute (EPI) also warns that the federal poverty numbers do not fully capture the financial squeeze facing Rhode Islanders.

Nina Harrison, EPI’s Policy Director, points out that although the Census Bureau’s Official Poverty Measure fell by 0.5 percentage points nationally in 2025, the broader Supplemental Poverty Measure did not change significantly. She contends that even though incomes may have risen, they did not rise enough to offset higher costs.

Harrison also warns that changes in federal healthcare and food assistance policies will put additional pressure on low-income Rhode Islanders. She cited the loss of enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits and federal changes to SNAP and Medicaid as particular concerns.

EPI’s 2026 Rhode Island Standard of Need report, scheduled for release Monday, takes a closer look at what Rhode Island households need to cover basic living expenses. Harrison says its findings show that nearly 40% of Rhode Island households cannot afford their basic needs, including many older residents. More than half of Rhode Island women age 65 and older who live alone cannot meet their basic needs, she said.

“Without significant intervention and harm reduction, OBRA and related federal policies are sure to increase the poverty rate and human suffering,” Harrison warned.

She is urging the General Assembly to find ways to protect food and healthcare assistance for Rhode Islanders who lose federal benefits and to strengthen other programs serving low-income residents.

A Final Note…

As previously stated, the numbers the Census Bureau released tell us something important. The nation’s overall poverty rate may have fallen in 2025, but millions of older Americans are being left behind.

Casey’s warning at the start of the press briefing deserves the attention of Congress and state legislatures. Since millions of older Americans face financial difficulties, it is no surprise that many ultimately end up in poverty after retirement.

For many, the financial problems begin years before they collect their first Social Security check. They retire with little savings, no pension or workplace retirement plan, and not much room in their monthly budget to cover increased rent, a broken refrigerator, or an unexpected medical bill.

AARP Foundation efforts to call attention to senior poverty should serve as a troubling warning to Congress as it debates the future of Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the Older Americans Act, and SNAP.

Congress must address Social Security’s long-term financial problems before automatic cuts to program benefits take place in 2032. Tens of millions of retirees, disabled individuals, and survivors already living on the financial edge would see their situation worsen. Congress must also ensure that changes to the nation’s social safety-net programs don’t make it harder for eligible older Americans to get the help they need.

Rhode Island lawmakers also have their work to do. Eliminating the asset limit for the Medicare Savings Program would be one concrete step toward helping low-income older Rhode Islanders stretch their limited monthly incomes.

To review AARP Foundation’s June 2026 Economic Security Monitor (full report), go to AARP Foundation Economic Security Monitor Fact Sheet.

To review AARP Foundation’s June 2026 Economic Security Monitor (fact sheet), go to AARP Foundation Economic Security Monitor Fact Sheet

Download the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2025 Poverty Report, go to Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2025

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US Senate Special Committee on Aging holds its First Hearing on Menopause

Published in RINewsToday on September 21, 2026

For generations, menopause was a health issue that many women were expected to deal with on their own, quietly. Last week, the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging took the issue into the public discussion, holding the first congressional hearing devoted exclusively to menopause.

The Sept. 16 hearing brought congressional attention to an issue affecting millions of American women navigating perimenopause, menopause and post-menopause. Approximately 2 million more women enter menopause each year.

Menopause affects women differently, but the symptoms can upend daily life. Women may experience hot flashes, vaginal dryness, insomnia, migraine headaches, brain fog, heart palpitations, mood changes, and changes in metabolism. For some, these symptoms become debilitating, disrupting daily and work routines and quality of life.

Senate Aging Committee Chairman Rick Scott (R-FL) and Ranking Member Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) convened the hearing, titled “Half the Country, Zero Hearings: Meeting the Moment to End the Menopause Care Gap in America,” to examine what lawmakers call the nation’s “menopause care gap.”

Medical experts, researchers, and women’s health advocates testified about the lack of research, physician training, and access to treatment.

The Senate Aging Committee hearing was a critical step in elevating this issue to determine what’s needed to improve medical research, training, and care for women experiencing menopause,” said Gillibrand in her opening statement.

“Menopause affects half of the population. For generations, women have been told to suffer in silence. I’m done with this silence,” she said.

Even though women in midlife make up a significant portion of the U.S. population, Gillibrand called menopause “one of the most under-researched, undertreated, and under-discussed” health issues in the nation. She pointed to estimates that less than 1% of federal women’s health research funding goes to menopause.

Gillibrand also noted that about 80% of OB-GYN residents report feeling ill-prepared to discuss menopause or its symptoms. The result, she said, is that many women seeking medical care are left without adequate treatment.

Menopause care also carries an economic cost. Gillibrand cited a Mayo Clinic study estimating that menopause costs the U.S. economy $26.6 billion annually, including $1.8 billion in lost work time.

“There’s simply no excuse for the lack of resources and information to help every woman navigate menopause and the challenges that come with it,” said Scott in his opening statement.

Scott cautioned that there is no “one-size-fits-all solution.” Instead, he called for women to have access to reliable information, qualified health care providers, and treatment options that allow them to make informed decisions about their health.

Scott also pointed to hormone replacement therapy as a safe treatment option for many women, while noting that lack of education and access can make it difficult for women to obtain appropriate treatment.

“We also need providers who have the most up-to-date training and who can clearly discuss treatment options with their patients,” said Scott, pointing to the shortage of health care providers as another barrier to care.

Scott and Gillibrand also announced that they sent a bipartisan letter requesting the Government Accountability Office to examine how the federal government both coordinates and funds menopause research and care. The senators say the report could help identify remaining gaps in research, education and treatment.

More Research Needed

Federal funding for research advancing menopause care is inadequate, Dr. Jean Wactawski-Wende, a SUNY Distinguished Professor who has conducted women’s health research for more than four decades, charged.

“In 1985, the National Institutes of Health put forward a study…the report said we’re not doing enough research on women…I’d argue we are now 35 years later, and we have not come all that far,” she told the committee.

“Clinical trials are the gold standard of evidence, and we do not have enough of those trials in women, especially in postmenopausal women,” added Wactawski-Wende.

She identified four areas needing greater attention: increased federal research on women’s health throughout the lifespan; chronic disease in aging women; better education and clinical care after menopause; and greater attention to healthy behaviors throughout life.

Dr. Lynne M. Coslett-Charlton, a board-certified gynecologist who has practiced in Northeastern Pennsylvania for 27 years, pointed to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s recent changes to warning labels for menopausal hormone therapy as a major shift in women’s treatment.

Coslett-Charlton also voiced concern that women might get menopause advice from social media influencers instead of from qualified clinicians. This could, in turn, lead them to buy unregulated supplements and products.

She noted that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has increased its educational efforts to steer patients toward safe, evidence-based, and medically appropriate care. Coslett-Charlton and ACOG also support passage of the Advancing Menopause Care and Midlife Women’s Health Act.

Training Doctors to Treat Menopause

Jennifer Weiss-Wolf, executive director of NYU Law’s Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Center, urged Congress to make telehealth part of the solution. She told lawmakers that virtual care could help connect women, particularly those in areas without specialists, to providers knowledgeable about menopause.

But telehealth has its own barriers, she cautioned, including poor internet connectivity and inadequate insurance coverage. Weiss-Wolf also warned that physician education about menopause must improve.

“For those who started residency after 2002 — statistically that amounts to more than half of all practicing OB-GYNs in the U.S. today — the majority have not had meaningful or even any menopause training,” she said.

Weiss-Wolf called for modern clinical trials that include millennial and Gen X women, with racial, ethnic and geographic diversity. She also urged researchers to use technology better to collect data and track symptoms.

She called on lawmakers to pass three federal bills to increase research and attention to women’s health: the Advancing Menopause Care and Midlife Women’s Health Act; the Service Women and Veterans Menopause Research Act; and the Hormone Health Data and Research Act.

“I Want to Feel Like Myself Again”

“When I ask patients what they hope to get from their care, I often hear, ‘I want to feel like myself again,’” said Dr. Suzanne Silverman Fenske, an obstetrician-gynecologist and integrative medicine practitioner who has practiced in New York City for nearly two decades.

“They want their energy back, relief from anxiety, and a sense of control over a body that suddenly feels unfamiliar,” she said, adding that she

Fenske told the Senate panel that before menopause, a woman’s risk of chronic disease is generally lower than a man’s. After menopause, that risk increases. She pointed to heart disease, hip fractures and urinary sepsis among the serious health problems facing older women.

Fenske also raised an issue that receives far less attention — how physicians are reimbursed for treating menopausal women.

“There is not much incentive for physicians to take care of menopausal women,” she told lawmakers.

Fenske said low insurance reimbursement makes it difficult for independent physicians to spend the necessary time with menopause patients. Large hospital networks may be better able to absorb those costs, she said, while smaller independent practices cannot.

Like the other witnesses, Fenske highlighted the lack of minimum standards for menopause education in medical residency programs.

Fenske offered lawmakers a striking comparison: OB-GYN residents are required to complete at least 200 vaginal deliveries, but there is no comparable minimum requirement for menopause education. She called on Congress to push Medicare and the Departments of War and Veterans Affairs to make menopause education part of accreditation standards.

Black Box Warning Changes and Challenges

Menopause treatment has received renewed federal attention under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who announced in November 2025 that the FDA would begin removing its strongest “black box” warnings about cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and probable dementia from hormone replacement therapies, including estrogen. The first six revised labels were approved in February 2026, reflecting the administration’s position that overly broad warnings had discouraged women from seeking effective symptom relief. The change does not mean hormone therapy is risk-free: treatment remains an individual decision, with the FDA emphasizing initiation of systemic therapy before age 60 or within 10 years of menopause. The boxed warning about endometrial cancer remains for systemic estrogen-only products. On September 3, the FDA said it was working with manufacturers to increase estrogen patch supplies after rising demand made them harder to find.

Rhode Island No. 1 in U.S. Menopause Workplace Protections

On June 24, 2025, Gov. Dan McKee signed into law legislation (S 0361), introduced by Sen. Lori Urso (D-Dist. 8, Pawtucket), to support women experiencing menopause under the state’s fair employment statute—making Rhode Island the first state to enact such workplace protections explicitly. Rep. Karen Alzate (D-Dist. 60, Pawtucket, Central Falls) introduced a companion bill (H 6161), which passed by concurrence.

Rhode Island law already prohibits workplace discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions. This includes requiring employers to provide reasonable accommodations and protecting individuals from being denied employment opportunities or promotions—or terminated—because of these conditions. The new law adds menopause to this list of protected health conditions.

“Menopause is a difficult and personal subject that has been stigmatized in this country,” said Sen. Urso in a statement announcing the bill’s passage. “But as something that affects half our population, it’s time we recognize it as a workforce issue—especially as our workforce ages along with our population. The current lack of protections contributes to inadequate retirement savings and lost leadership opportunities for women and poses an economic challenge for employers facing workforce shortages and the loss of experienced employees,” she says.

“Menopause is not something women choose to experience, and its effects on the mind and body can significantly impact daily life and job performance,” said Rep. Alzate. “Women should not have to risk being penalized or discriminated against at work due to a naturally occurring biological transition,” she says.

Rhode Island’s new law is paving the way for workplaces that actually support women experiencing menopause—and it sets a great example for the rest of the country to follow.

A Final Note…

For the millions of women now going through menopause — and the millions more who will follow them — the Sept. 16 hearing put an issue long discussed quietly in doctors’ offices and among women themselves squarely before Congress.

Whether the hearing ultimately results in more federal research, better physician training, and improved access to care will depend on what lawmakers do next. But after generations of silence, menopause finally received its first congressional hearing.

To read Scott and Gillibrand’s correspondence to GAO on the federal government’s role in Menopause research and education, go to Gillibrand Scott GAO Letter on Menopause

To watch the Sept. 16 Senate Aging Committee hearing, go to Half the Country, Zero Hearings: Meeting… | Senate Committee On Aging.

To read about RI’s new Menopause law, go to Rhode Island First in Nation to Add Workplace Protections for Women Experiencing Menopause – Herb Weiss

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Older Adults Play Key Role as Volunteers in Their Communities

Published in RINewsToday on September 14, 2026

Being a volunteer can be good for your health and mental well-being, but AARP Foundation’s newly released analysis sheds light on another positive. People age 50 and older contribute more than half — 55% — of all volunteer hours, adding approximately $92.2 billion annually to the nation’s economy.

As the nation marked the 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance (a day every year that thousands of people and organizations nationwide volunteer and “do good” in recognition of 9/11), the latest analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey Civic Engagement and Volunteering Supplement helps us to better understand how older Americans contribute as volunteers and participate in the nation’s civic life.

The data show that older volunteers help build the social fabric of their communities while providing critical support to organizations working to meet their missions and operational needs.

The findings, detailed in “Older Adult Volunteers: A Pillar of Community and Civic Life,” show that older adults do not just volunteer in large numbers. They also show up consistently and contribute more time, providing the reliable support that schools, nonprofits, and caregiving networks depend on.

The eight-page analysis also casts doubt on the idea that volunteering is mainly limited to retirement; it shows that adults aged 50 to 64 volunteer at rates similar to those of adults aged 65 and older.

The analysis also questions the idea that volunteering is mostly limited to retirement years; it shows that the rate at which adults aged 50 to 64 volunteer is similar to that of adults who are 65 years of age and over.

“Older adults are an extraordinary force for good in our communities,” said AARP Foundation President Claire Casey in a Sept. 10 statement announcing the study’s results. “They put a lifetime of skills and experience to work for others, benefiting all of us by making our neighborhoods and communities stronger and more connected.”

According to the AARP Foundation, older adults contribute substantially to volunteerism because they volunteer in greater numbers and spend more time volunteering. While adults age 50 and older make up just 36% of the U.S. population, they account for 44% of the nation’s volunteers.

They also contribute an average of 89 volunteer hours annually, compared with 56 hours among volunteers under age 50 — 33 additional hours each year. Nearly three-quarters (73%) volunteer at least once a month, compared with 63% of younger volunteers.

Volunteerism Enhances Civic Participation

Adults age 50 and older who volunteer are more likely than the overall 50-plus population to vote (79% compared with 61%) and to belong to civic groups or associations (67% compared with 29%).

Older volunteers also tend to stay connected with their neighbors, families and friends. More than 37% regularly discuss politics with neighbors, and 71% do so with family or friends. Sixty-seven percent follow the news daily.

The analysis also found that 90% of volunteers age 50 and older socialize with their neighbors (compared to 77% overall), and 80% do so at least once a month. Fifty-seven percent regularly do favors for their neighbors, compared with 41% overall.

The findings show that older adults who volunteer are not just giving their time to organizations and helping their neighbors. Many are also staying involved in the civic life of their communities.

Volunteerism’s Impact on Health and Well-Being

Research also shows that volunteering may benefit older adults’ health.

A 2013 Carnegie Mellon University study found that older adults who volunteered at least 200 hours per year were 40% less likely to develop hypertension, or high blood pressure, than those who did not volunteer when evaluated four years later.

For the study, researchers followed 1,164 adults ages 51 to 91 from across the nation. All had normal blood pressure when first interviewed in 2006. When researchers interviewed them again four years later, they found that the specific type of volunteer activity did not matter. The amount of time spent volunteering did, with 40% less likely to develop high blood pressure.

“As people get older, social transitions like retirement, bereavement and the departure of children from the home often leave older adults with fewer natural opportunities for social interaction,” said lead researcher Rodlescia S. Sneed in a statement releasing the findings of this study. She noted that volunteering may provide older adults with social connections they might not otherwise have

More recent research suggests that helping others may also slow cognitive decline.

A study reported on ScienceDaily’s website in December of 2025 found that helping others just a few hours each week may slow brain aging. Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Massachusetts Boston followed more than 30,000 U.S. adults over two decades.

The researchers found that people who consistently helped others outside their household experienced a 15% to 20% slower rate of age-related cognitive decline. The benefits were found both among those who formally volunteered and those who helped informally, such as giving someone a ride to a medical appointment, watching children, or doing lawn work for a neighbor, relative, or friend.

The strongest and most consistent benefit was found among those who spent about two to four hours per week helping others.

“Everyday acts of support — whether organized or personal — can have lasting cognitive impact,” said Sae Hwang Han, an assistant professor of human development and family sciences at the University of Texas at Austin who led the study.

Han noted that the cognitive benefits were not just short-term, but accumulated over time with continued involvement. The benefits were also found with both formal volunteering and informal helping.

“Informal helping is sometimes assumed to offer fewer health benefits due to its lack of social recognition,” Han said. “It was a pleasant surprise to find that it provides cognitive benefits comparable to formal volunteering.”

Finding Volunteer Opportunities in Rhode Island

According to the state’s Office of Healthy Aging (OHA), about 65,000 volunteers age 55 and older in Rhode Island contribute $149 million in services statewide.

To learn more about opportunities, older Rhode Islanders can find opportunities across the state on OHA’s online volunteer resource page. Go to Volunteer | Office of Healthy Aging.

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