Poverty at Older Ages: Insights From a Pilot Principal Poverty Measure
Rosemary Hyson, Sanders Korenman

TL;DR
This paper introduces a new poverty measure that shows how government benefits reduce poverty, especially for older adults.
Contribution
The paper presents a pilot Principal Poverty Measure that incorporates health, housing, and food needs for a more accurate poverty assessment.
Findings
PPM poverty rates are lower for homeowners and those with health insurance compared to the SPM.
Social insurance and tax credits close 96% of the pre-transfer poverty gap for older adults.
Rental assistance reduces poverty by over 50 percentage points for older people under the PPM.
Abstract
This paper estimates poverty rates and impacts of government benefits on poverty according to a pilot Principal Poverty Measure (PPM) for 2020-2023 using March CPS data. The PPM is a revision of the Census Bureau’s Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) and was recommended by a 2023 NAS report. Our pilot PPM poverty line uses policy-based needs standards following an approach developed for the Health Inclusive Poverty Measure (Korenman and Remler 2016): a benchmark silver plan from ACA Health Insurance Marketplaces or Medicare coverage, Fair Market Rents from HUD, and dietary needs in USDA’s Thrifty Food Plans. PPM resources include cash income, in-kind benefits including health insurance, and, for homeowners, an implicit net resource flow from their home: avoided rental payments minus homeowner costs. Compared to the SPM, PPM poverty rates are lower among homeowners and those with health…
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Taxonomy
TopicsFood Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Income, Poverty, and Inequality
