The brief’s key findings are *Numerous studies have examined the impact of Massachusetts’ landmark 2006 health care reform, the basis for the national Affordable Care Act. *The results suggest that the Massachusetts reform has largely succeeded by: *reducing uninsurance rates; *improving...

Employer-sponsored pensions are an important source of retirement income and often make the difference between having a comfortable retirement and just scraping by. Over the past two decades, pension sponsorship and participation have remained relatively constant. At any given point in time,...

Even before the sharp financial downturn, working longer had emerged as perhaps the most attractive response to the contraction of the nation’s retirement income system.1 Since the downturn, working longer increasingly seems to be the only way most work­ers approaching retirement can secure a...

The Obama Administration has proposed "Autho-IRAs" to boost pension coverage among those not currently offered a plan. Such a policy is seen to offer great potential, given that 60% of low-income workers currently offered a 401(k) choose to participate. However, these low-income workers with...

What is the impact of the shift from defined benefit to defined contribution plans on the pension wealth of households approaching retirement? Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, this brief documents this shift and compares employer-sponsored pension wealth across households with...

The release of the Federal Reserve’s 2013 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) is a great opportunity to reassess Americans’ retirement preparedness as mea­sured by the National Retirement Risk Index (NRRI). The NRRI shows the share of working-age house­holds who are “at risk” of being...

The brief’s key findings are: *Federal Reserve data show that retirement preparedness has been declining over time, but studies on the level of preparedness offer conflicting assessments. *The National Retirement Risk Index (NRRI) finds half of households are “at risk,” while studies of...

The brief’s key findings are: *As 401(k)s and IRAs have become the dominant source of retirement saving, the potential for pre-retirement withdrawals – “leakages” – has grown. *Leakages occur via three channels: 1) in-service withdrawals for hardships or after age 59½; 2) cashouts...

The brief’s key findings are: *A small, but significant, number of multiemployer pension plans face insolvency in the next 20 years – despite actions to reduce benefits and raise contributions. *To avoid insolvency, a Commission with representatives from plans, employers, and unions has...

The brief’s key findings are: *Long-term care is expensive, but only 13 percent of single individuals over 65 have long-term care insurance. *Previous models of care usage appear to understate the risk of going into care and overstate the duration of care for those who require it. *If...