Inflation hits old people hardest with few options on the horizon

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Inflationary pressures may be starting to ease, but higher prices throughout much of 2022 are still taking a toll on older adults, with a larger share of people saying they felt their finances were worse off than a year before. Consumer inflation in November was still up 7.1% from a year earlier.
While people of all ages are struggling, those over 65 often have an even harder time because they usually live on a fixed income, unable to increase their paychecks with overtime or bonuses.
The problem will become more widespread in the coming years as more baby boomers, who began turning 65 in 2011, join the ranks of the retired. In 2050, the U.S. Population ages 65 and over will be 83.9 million, nearly double what it was (43.1 million) in 2012, the Census Bureau projects.
An AARP report released last month that showed more than a third of people 65 and older described their financial situation at midyear as worse than it was 12 months before. It was a huge jump from the 13% of adults 65 and older who said the same thing in January.
The older adults were among 4,817 adults aged 30 and over who participated in a semiannual survey fielded in July across all 50 states and the District of Columbia by the independent social research organization NORC at the University of Chicago on behalf of AARP. The margin of error was plus or minus 2.57%.