Thread: Bankruptcy Booms Among Older Americans

There's a link in the previous post about a number of US states that were looking to bring in drugs from Canada because they are cheaper. You can see this shower of c u n t s letting it happen, eh?

Pharmaceutical lobbyists vehemently oppose importing drugs from Canada, and have argued the drugs are not safe. The industry spent $277m on attempts to influence members of Congress in 2017 alone.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/...-import-canada

Bankruptcy Booms Among Older Americans

So, will there be less of these loud-mouthed fokers spouting off about how great their country is?

Originally Posted by stroller

Bankruptcy Booms Among Older Americans


So, will there be less of these loud-mouthed fokers spouting off about how great their country is?

No, they'll blame Obama.

Originally Posted by SKkin

...until she found a "program" here in the States that would help her with costs of that medication.

Communism in the US, Stalinists have infiltrated the health services!

Originally Posted by stroller

Communism in the US, Stalinists have infiltrated the health services!

That "program" is not associated with any branch of government. It's through a private entity.

Something her doctor helped her find..

Good imput there. Yes here you the goal is to land a decent job with ok medical coverage by the employer. I say ok because unless you work for the state as a school teacher, a cop, fireman or politician (that get a free ride) that is what average joe hopes for.

Don't get me wrong, some major players here especially in the tech field get showered with benefits while the gal at Applebee's gets pissed on. That's reality. It's what you know, what you do ect. Your value to your employer.

Sometimes reality sucks. Hell, if I could score guaranteed health care right now I'd be gone. And is part of the deal, I think they know that. Well, their actuaries do.

Originally Posted by David48atTD

or have
Health Insurance as part of your employment.

That has gone downhill since the passage of the "reform" at least in my case. My employer's health plan has went up tremendously in cost(more than doubled what they take out of my paycheck bi-weekly), the deductible went from $2000 to $5,000/person and it's now a 75/25% plan instead of 80/20% as it was before reform. Meaning once I meet the deductible, the plan now only pays 75% of the cost instead of 80%.

Originally Posted by David48atTD

Back to the US. Crazy and inefficient Health Care system who's target seems more attuned to healthcare insurance industry profit
then patient care.

FTFY...IMHO

Originally Posted by uncle junior

For a rapidly growing share of older Americans, traditional ideas about life in retirement are being upended by a dismal reality: bankruptcy.

The signs of potential trouble — vanishing pensions, soaring medical expenses, inadequate savings — have been building for years. Now, new research sheds light on the scope of the problem: The rate of people 65 and older filing for bankruptcy is three times what it was in 1991, the study found, and the same group accounts for a far greater share of all filers.

Driving the surge, the study suggests, is a three-decade shift of financial risk from government and employers to individuals, who are bearing an ever-greater responsibility for their own financial well-being as the social safety net shrinks.

The transfer has come in the form of, among other things, longer waits for full Social Security benefits, the replacement of employer-provided pensions with 401(k) savings plans and more out-of-pocket spending on health care. Declining incomes, whether in retirement or leading up to it, compound the challenge.


Cheryl Mcleod of Las Vegas filed for bankruptcy in January after struggling to keep up with her mortgage payments and other expenses. “I am 70, and I am working for less money than I ever did in my life,” she said. “This life stuff happens.”

As the study, from the Consumer Bankruptcy Project, explains, older people whose finances are precarious have few places to turn. “When the costs of aging are off-loaded onto a population that simply does not have access to adequate resources, something has to give,” the study says, “and older Americans turn to what little is left of the social safety net — bankruptcy court.”


https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/05/b...americans.html

I think the real culprit here is the people themselves. Older Americans medical expenses are covered by Medicare and a minimal contribution by the person so scratch high medical costs.
It seems the idea should be to live within your means, pay off your debts and go into retirement with a minimal amount of expenses, why would anyone take on a high mortgage knowing it would stretch into their retirement years, clearly unsound financial planning.
Sure there are circumstances that effect some people that are outside of their control, but being seventy and having a large mortgage, as in the case of the lady in Las Vegas makes no sense. To many people go through life with no vision of their future and unfortunately pay a heavy price when they get older.

Originally Posted by RPETER65

why would anyone take on a high mortgage knowing it would stretch into their retirement years, clearly unsound financial planning.

A lot of these older people remortgaged their homes to try to help their kids(and grandkids) who couldn't any longer find decent jobs that paid a living wage. Not saying all but maybe more than you think. Not to mention the kids and grandkids are sometimes living with them which puts further financial strain on the elder set.

Originally Posted by SKkin

My employer's health plan has went up tremendously in cost(more than doubled what they take out of my paycheck bi-weekly)

Just for accuracy's sake and to be fair, part of that cost increase was said to be because I'm a smoker. Curiously enough, that didn't seem to matter until after "reform."

Originally Posted by SKkin

A lot of these older people remortgaged their homes to try to help their kids(and grandkids) who couldn't any longer find decent jobs that paid a living wage. Not saying all but maybe more than you think. Not to mention the kids and grandkids are sometimes living with them which puts further financial strain on the elder set.

You make a good point to a certain extent but there comes a time when the kids and grand kids need to be cut loose and face their own responsibilities, no one should impose on their parents as to force them into bankruptcy in what should be their golden years.

Originally Posted by RPETER65

I think the real culprit here is the people themselves. Older Americans medical expenses are covered by Medicare and a minimal contribution by the person so scratch high medical costs.
It seems the idea should be to live within your means, pay off your debts and go into retirement with a minimal amount of expenses, why would anyone take on a high mortgage knowing it would stretch into their retirement years, clearly unsound financial planning.
Sure there are circumstances that effect some people that are outside of their control, but being seventy and having a large mortgage, as in the case of the lady in Las Vegas makes no sense. To many people go through life with no vision of their future and unfortunately pay a heavy price when they get older.

^ I agree wholeheartedly its the people themselves in most cases. I have known many that saw housing prices soar so they refinanced and took money out to go buy boats, expensive cars, add swimming pools etc. Then the folks with the constant new house purchases. They get some equity and rather then let it ride, sell to buy a bigger house and with that comes higher mortgage, higher property tax and home owners insurance coupled with a new 30 year loan and many of the these folks are pulling that stunt at 45 to 50 years old never thinking about that mortgage and property tax bill when they are 70 +. As I stated earlier most Americans live completely in "the now". I do not necessarily blame them but if they chose to do it, then they should not have a safe harbor later filing Bankruptcy to cover up their personal choices that lead them to personal financial hardships.

I have many many friends in the states that range from age ~40 to 60 and all but a few are deeply in debt. Huge mortgage, credit card debt, multiple large car payments and auto insurance costs coupled with raising children and will have to put them through college etc etc. They basically live check to check and have no means to put away for later life after their earning years are done. IMHO this situation is only going to worsen as the years go on.

Originally Posted by uncle junior

Health care.....meds and a major illness could easily wipe out alot retirees

Are you not familiar with medicare and Medigap plans?

Originally Posted by JPPR2

^ I agree wholeheartedly its the people themselves in most cases. I have known many that saw housing prices soar so they refinanced and took money out to go buy boats, expensive cars, add swimming pools etc. Then the folks with the constant new house purchases. They get some equity and rather then let it ride, sell to buy a bigger house and with that comes higher mortgage, higher property tax and home owners insurance coupled with a new 30 year loan and many of the these folks are pulling that stunt at 45 to 50 years old never thinking about that mortgage and property tax bill when they are 70 +. As I stated earlier most Americans live completely in "the now". I do not necessarily blame them but if they chose to do it, then they should not have a safe harbor later filing Bankruptcy to cover up their personal choices that lead them to personal financial hardships.

I have many many friends in the states that range from age ~40 to 60 and all but a few are deeply in debt. Huge mortgage, credit card debt, multiple large car payments and auto insurance costs coupled with raising children and will have to put them through college etc etc. They basically live check to check and have no means to put away for later life after their earning years are done. IMHO this situation is only going to worsen as the years go on.

Spot on. I owned four homes in the US made money on each one, age 59 I retired sold my last home in the states moved to Thailand paid cash to build a new home. I went back to the states two years later, took on a fixer upper and made a second home back in the US.

Common sense and living with in your means works wonders.

^^i am. Whats ur point

Originally Posted by uncle junior

^^i am. Whats ur point

What's my point, my point is with the safety net of medicare and the low cost of Medigap policies why would any retire be wiped out because of high medical costs. Why was that so hard for you to see?

^alotta reasons. 2nd mortagage a house to help out uninsured kids with major medical problems. Carrying health care debt from working days into retirement. Falling through the cracks of a broken system. Never ending reasons how someone in their retirement years can go bamkrupt by health cars costs.

Originally Posted by TuskegeeBen

(153 years after the fact)

What happened 153 years ago?

Ben got his last green.

Originally Posted by RPETER65

Spot on. I owned four homes in the US made money on each one, age 59 I retired sold my last home in the states moved to Thailand paid cash to build a new home. I went back to the states two years later, took on a fixer upper and made a second home back in the US.

Common sense and living with in your means works wonders.

When I was around 45 I saw the financial ruins people were putting themselves in. My ex wife wanted to sell our current very nice home to buy a bigger home in a gated community. I said NO!!. I said that my mortgage cannot exceed 65% of either of our incomes. This way everything above that along with others income becomes all upside. Well ex wifey wanted more and I did not and for that reason and a few others we parted ways. We became different people. By 48 I was fully debt free except for rent and basic living expenses and this was at a time when I was making the most salary wise so I was banking big dollars and maxing out my IRA. This carried on until my current wife and I moved here to Thailand. We built our house here while we were working in the states and paid it off in full. I have no debt here nor the US but have financial ties and keep my status current there in the event we should move back (Plan B). The only risk I carry is I am "Self Insured" at this point. Whats really annoying is all the years I paid for health insurance for my ex wife and daughters and we seldom ever used it. We paid a monthly premium even though my employer paid the larger portion and we still had deductibles and prescription fees.

That said I plan on being a full on pensioner around 70 (If I live that long). My belief has been at 70 I would be cruising along and my desire to do the things I do now will diminish significantly so my needs for money will drop as well. So I am living it up currently while I can still play hard and do stupid shit and recover from it. I have a Will that states that if diagnosed with a terminal disease there will be no money spent to try and sustain me. I am not giving my assets to live a poor quality of life just to live a bit longer (My Grandma did it that way and she was such a great woman).

I have lived and enjoyed an incredibly good life.

Originally Posted by SKkin

A lot of these older people remortgaged their homes

Have you noticed how many commercials there are on both UK and US TV targeting coffin dodgers who have equity in their homes?

They are a good demographic for financial bloodsuckers as many of them really don't understand that they're being conned.

The UK trade body for these fucking parasites is even called "SHIP" (Safe Home Income Plans).

Yeah, we have that in Oz too. They call it a "reverse mortgage". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_mortgage