What Elders Need to Live and What they Have in Sonoma County

This chart compares the basic cost of living, as quantified by the Elder Standard Index, to three common sources of  income for elders.  The gap between elders' basic living expenses, as shown by the Elder Standard Index lines in black, and their income, as shown by the green bar charts, illustrates the degree of economic instability that far too many elders experience. To view the detailed table, click here.

The chart shows that it is not just "poor" elders who are struggling in Sonoma County:

• The average Social Security payment of $12,878 is not enough to live on, and yet, one out of three seniors in California rely exclusively on Social Security to cover their basic costs.
• Women--even those few fortunate enough to have a pension in addition to Social Security--can not meet their expenses if they own a home but are still paying off a mortgage.
• Men, with a pension in addition to Social Security and other sources of unearned income, can meet their expenses, but only if they own their home outright or rent,
• Public supports are supposed to help close the gap between seniors' income and their expenses, but many elders fall through the cracks:  access to these supports is based on an unrealistically low assessment of what it costs to live, the $10,210 Federal Poverty Line.
• SSI, the program designed to help the most vulnerable population - the  blind, aged, and disabled -- puts them hovering right above the FPL, but far below what it really costs to make ends meet, according to the Elder Standard.

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