Highlights of the change that is ahead , continued
income in 2019 of $ 70,254 ($ 74,365 for non-Hispanic white , $ 50,553 for Hispanic , $ 51,743 for African American , and $ 76,235 for Asian American ). About 5 % of family households with an older adult householder had incomes less than $ 15,000 and 81 % had incomes of $ 35,000 or more . For all older persons reporting income in 2019 ( 52.8 million ), 12 % reported less than $ 10,000 and 55 % reported $ 25,000 or more . Nearly 1 in 10 people age 65 and older ( 8.9 % or 4.9 million ) lived below the poverty level . In 2019 , 6.8 % of the older non-Hispanic white population was poor , compared to higher percentages of racial and ethnic minority groups : 18 % for African American population , 9.3 % for Asian American , and 17.1 % for Hispanic ( any race ) Older women had a higher poverty rate ( 10.3 %) than older men ( 7.2 %) in 2019 . A higher percentage of older persons living alone were poor ( 16.1 %) as compared with older persons living with families ( 5.3 %). The highest poverty rates were experienced among older Hispanic women who lived alone ( 32.1 %) and older African American women who lived alone ( 31.7 %). In 2011 , the U . S . Census Bureau released a new Supplemental Poverty Measure ( SPM ). The SPM methodology shows a significantly higher number of older persons below poverty than is shown by the official poverty measure . For persons age 65 and older , this poverty measure showed a poverty level of 12.8 % in 2019 — almost 4 percentage points higher than the official rate of 8.9 %. Unlike the official poverty rate , the SPM takes into account regional variations in the cost of housing etc ., and , even more significantly , the impact of both non-cash benefits received ( e . g ., SNAP / food stamps , low income tax credits , and WIC ) and non-discretionary expenditures including medical out-of-pocket expenses . For persons 65 and older , medical out-of-pocket expenses were the major source of the significant differences between these measures . The SPM does not replace the official poverty measure .
Housing Of the 14.1 million households headed by persons age 75 and older in 2019 , 77 % ( 10.8 million ) owned their homes and 23 % ( 3.3 million ) rented . The median household income of older homeowners was $ 36,200 . The median household income of older renters was $ 18,280 . For older homeowners age 75 and older in 2019 , the median home construction year was 1972 compared to 1979 for all homeowners . Among the homes owned by people age 75 and older , 3 % had moderate to severe problems with plumbing , heating , electric , wiring , and / or upkeep . In 2019 , the median value of homes owned by older persons was $ 200,000 ( with a median purchase price of $ 75,000 ). In comparison , the median home value of all homeowners was $ 230,000 ( with a median purchase price of $ 150,000 ).
Employment In 2020 , 9.8 million ( 18 %) Americans age 65 and older were in the labor force ( working or actively seeking work ). This is a decrease from the 10.7 million ( 20.2 %) older adults in the labor force in 2019 . Older adults constituted 6.6 % of the U . S . labor force . Approximately 7.5 % were unemployed in 2020 compared to 3 % in 2019 . Labor force participation of men age 65 and older decreased steadily from 63.1 % in 1900 to 45.8 % in 1950 and then to 15.8 % in 1985 . It stayed under 20 % until 2006 and has been hovering between 22 % -24% for the last few years . The labor force participation rate for women age 65 and older rose slightly from 8.3 % in 1900 to 9.7 % in 1950 and then fell to 7.3 % in 1985 . It stayed at 8 % -9% during the 1990s . Beginning in 2000 , the labor force participation rate of older women started to gradually rise to the 2019 level of 16.4 %. It declined in 2020 to 14.5 %.
Health and Health Care In 2019 , 22.3 % of the population age 65 to 74 assessed their health as fair or poor as compared to 29.3 % of the population age 75 and over . Most older Americans have at least one chronic condition and many have multiple conditions . Leading chronic conditions among adults age 65 and older in 2019 include arthritis ( 48 %); coronary heart disease ( 14 %); myocardial infarction ( 9 %); angina ( 4 %); any cancer ( 25 %); COPD , emphysema , or chronic bronchitis ( 10 %); stroke ( 9 % in 2017- 2018 ); and physician-diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes ( 29 % in 2015-2018 ). In 2015- 2018 , 82 % of men age 75 and older and 86 % of women age 75 and older had hypertension or were taking antihypertensive medication . In 2019 , 71 % of people age 65 and older reported that they received an influenza vaccination during the past 12 months and 67 % reported that they had ever received a pneumococcal vaccination . In 2019 , 8.2 % of persons age 65 and older reported that they were current smokers . In 2015-2018 , 32 % of men age 75 and over and 36 % of women age 75 and over were obese .
Medical Care In 2019 , 96 % of persons age 65 and older reported that they had a usual place to go for medical care , 26 % had a hospital emergency department visit in the past year , and only 3 % said that they failed to
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