Senior citizens are among the hardest hit by inflation. | micheile.com/Unsplash
Senior citizens are among the hardest hit by inflation. | micheile.com/Unsplash
As inflation continues to be a nationwide problem, retirees are being hit hard. Seniors in every state who are on a fixed income are extremely vulnerable to rising prices in food, gas, and utilities, causing them to make daily lifestyle changes in order to afford their cost of living.
Rick Santelli, an editor for CNBC's business news channel, recently emphasized that inflation is hitting retirees in the wallet.
"Are the retirees going to un-retire?" he asked. "This is going to answer it, and the answer is yes."
While rising prices are squeezing Americans' household budgets in every state, an additional strain is being placed on an estimated 56 million residents age 65 and older, The Washington Post reported. Many of these seniors "rely on fixed incomes and limited savings to cover monthly costs for prolonged and unpredictable periods," the newspaper said.
Based on the Elder Index, a cost-of-living measure created by the Gerontology Institute at Boston's University of Massachusetts, about half of older people who live alone "are struggling to get by on less than $27,000 a year — or the bare minimum for a single renter in good health to cover expenses," The Washington Post reported.
“Any small change in circumstance — rising prices, a medical emergency — can throw an older person’s budget completely out of whack,” Jan Mutchler, director of the institute, told The Washington Post.
Arizona, like Florida, is a popular retirement destination, as its senior population grows in the winter months with nearly 300,000 retirees temporarily settling in the state. On average, over 17% of Arizona's population is 65 or older and boasts over 100 age-restricted communities, Leisure Care reported.
A recent study led by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found that homelessness among seniors is rising rapidly and is expected to triple in the next decade, as reported by The Washington Post. Food banks have reported "increased demand from retirees, particularly grandparents raising grandchildren."
On March 10, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for the 12 months ending in February 2022. The data showed a 7.9% annual increase, which is a 40-year high.
Over the past two months in Phoenix, prices have risen 2.1% and are 10.9% higher than last year, the bureau reported. Food prices have increased 3.2% over the past two months and 8.2% over the year.
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