Bankruptcy is a legal status where a person declares they are in a financial fix and might not be able to pay for their debts. Individuals, businesses, and even big companies file for bankruptcies all over the world.
What is alarming is the high number of older people filing for bankruptcy recently. A study by Social Research Network reveals that the number of seniors filing for bankruptcy in recent years is double the number that registered in the last 25 years.
In a bid to determine what could be causing this worrying trend, researchers reveal that the decline in pension fees and an increase in healthcare costs might be the major causes of the broke seniors. Data from the Consumer Bankruptcy project confirms that high healthcare costs could be the primary cause of the increased number of older people filing for bankruptcy.
While some of the older people have Medicare covers that provide excellent health covers, this might not be enough to cover all the costs. The covers may not include things like dental procedures, hearing aids, foot care, eye checkups, and eyeglasses.
Because they mostly need such specialized treatment as they continue to get age, they end up incurring substantial healthcare debts that they are not able to cater for using their pension.
Aside from just incurring substantial medical bills, health problems cause older people to stop working or lose their jobs at the time when they are still able to work. It puts them in a terrible financial situation, with the only option left is to file a bankruptcy report.
