It comes as no surprise to the elderly and their families that they are struggling financially. Policy makers in Washington and Madison have been looking for proof in addition to the horror stories they hear from the elderly and now they have it.

A new report, “The Elder Economic Security Standard Index for Wisconsin,” confirms a widening gap between what the elderly need for expenses and what they are receiving from Social Security, pensions and savings accounts.

“The average Social Security payment for a retired single elder in Wisconsin in 2007 was $13,165, providing anywhere from as little as 57 percent to 78 percent of what the average elder in Wisconsin needs to cover his or her basic expenses,” said Alison Gottlieb of the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, a partner in the study.

The report, issued July 8, is collaboration between the Wisconsin Women’s Network, the Wider Opportunities for Women and the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts-Boston. It was designed to serve as a tool for assessing policy alternatives and outcomes as opposed to just anecdotal evidence.

One of the key findings is the elderly pay more as a percentage of their income for housing as well as health care. The average person over age 65 living in the Midwest spends 34 percent to 44 percent of her income on housing and 14 percent on health care. That compares to 32 percent for housing and 6 percent for health care for all other adults.

The report also shows that transportation needs do not decline that much after people retire. Transportation costs take up 15 percent of elder’s income compared to 17 percent for all others.

According to the report, the median income for those over 65 in Wisconsin for 2006 was $28,956, less than half of the median household income of householders in their “peak earning years of 45-64, $60,611. Social Security is the only source of income for 20 percent of seniors — the majority of who are women.

Mildred Evans of West Salem is one of those women. Evans is originally from Atlanta, Ga., and she just celebrated her 85th birthday. She moved up here to be closer to her sons and she lives alone in an assisted living facility. Evans suffers from intermittent MS and this past year she took a fall resulting in her arm being broken in two places and a concussion.

That hasn’t kept her from being involved and providing her input. Evans serves on a committee for the county Long Term Care Council and will soon be a co-chair of the council. “It’s the only way to keep going — get involved,” she said. “It gives me a sense of having value to others. I feel like I can contribute what I can.”

Because her income is below the federal poverty line, Evans qualifies for assistance from the federal, state and local programs in the form of health care, medication, transportation and housing. Her housing expense takes up 75 percent of her monthly check. But the cost is more than twice the amount of her monthly check. The balance is provided by county, state and federal programs. Then there’s groceries, prescription co-pays, transportation, clothing and other living expenses.

The federal poverty guidelines say the elderly are poor when a single person over 65 earns under $10,400 or an elderly couple earns under $14,000. These are the benchmarks used to determine eligibility in many assistance programs such as food stamps, Medicaid, subsidized housing or property tax help.

It is perhaps sadly ironic to say Evans is lucky in that she is considered poor; she falls below the poverty guidelines and therefore qualifies for assistance. Evans is used to living within her budget, but lately that is getting harder to do. “I have enough to satisfy my needs,” she said. “Food prices have gone up. Every time I go to the grocery store, it’s up. But transportation is a problem. People are stranded. It’s getting better, but it’s still a problem.”

Causeway helps meet her transportation needs, but she feels guilty using them and misses her independence. “Sometimes I just want to get out or go shopping or do something fun, but I feel guilty taking up space from someone who really needs to go to the doctor or something.”

Rector and Darlene Wall of Holmen receive Social Security and pension income, so they don’t qualify for assistance programs. Their biggest expense is housing, but “everything is getting harder,” Rector said. They are getting meals at the nutrition site in Holmen. “We come here every noon for our dinner,” Darlene said. “It’s a wonderful thing to have this service available to us.”

Harry Bourdo, also of Holmen, feels he and his wife are comfortable, but he feels bad for others. “The poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer, with no regard for people in need,” he said. He and his wife Donna own their own home and have paid off their mortgage. They receive Social Security and pension income and don’t feel they are struggling. “We’re very frugal,” Harry said. “We don’t require things we used to need. I just feel for the people that can’t afford to eat in this country.”

Lois Cook of Holmen agrees. “The price of everything is going up,” she said. “It’s making it more difficult to make ends meet. The price of gas is ridiculous.”

“The ability of seniors to pay for things, anything, is diminished because they are paying a lot more for food,” said Noreen Kuroski, director of the Aging Unit for La Crosse County. She said the county-provided meal programs are being hit hard, too. “We’re facing challenges in the meals program in trying to follow USDA guidelines. The raw cost of food has gone up 10 percent in last few months due to transportation costs. That has an adverse effect on our budget which was completed last year.”

And those on fixed incomes aren’t keeping up. According to the report, in 2006, 14 percent of Wisconsin households aged 65-74 had fixed incomes under $15,000; 32 percent had incomes under $25,000. Of those 75 years and older, 30 percent had incomes under $15,000; over half had incomes under $25,000.

Things are somewhat worse in La Crosse County than the rest of the state. The average Social Security payment statewide for a single person is $13,165, but in La Crosse County, it is $12,817. Yet the expenses are higher.

In La Crosse County, an elderly single person without a mortgage and in good health needs $17,518 for living expenses. This is higher than the state average of $16,909. This amount includes what is needed for housing (including utilities, taxes and insurance), food, transportation, health care (if in good health) and miscellaneous. A renter of a one bedroom needs $17,978 and an elderly homeowner with a mortgage needs $24,063. The amount needed for a couple ranges from $27,285 to $33,830 for the same category of expenses, higher than the state average of $25,360 to $33,178.

According to the report, the need for home- and community-based long-term care can double or even triple an elder’s expense for housing. Adding the cost of home- and community-based long-term care to basic costs, the single person in La Crosse County needs $24,743 to $31,288 a year for a low level of care to $59,450 to $65,995 for a high level of care. The elderly couple needs $34,510 to $41,055 for a low level of care and $69,217 to $75,762 per year for a high level of care.

Elders in Wisconsin face combined health care costs (premiums plus co-pays, deductibles and other out of pocket expenses) of $384 to $402 per month. Retired couples are unable to purchase supplemental health insurance through a family plan. They must each buy coverage as an individual, costing them between $768 to $805 per month.

“Economic conditions, the loss of employer-sponsored retirement plans and disadvantages that disproportionately affect women and people of color leave few options for retirees today,” said Sharyn Wisniewski, chair of the Wisconsin Women’s Network.

Kuroski summed it up another way: “I just think people must feel kind of precarious and vulnerable.”

Contact Jo Anne Killeen at joanne.killeen@lee.net.

or 786-6816.