Living Alone: The Choice and Health of Older Women

EXCERPT Although the exact definition of old remains controversial, older age usually is considered to be older than 65 years because it meets the criteria of eligibility for Medicare and full Social Security benefits (Markson, 2003). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2004, the life expectancy for U.S. men and women was 75.2 and 80.4 years, respectively (Miniño, Heron, & Smith, 2006). In 2003, 44.3% of women ages 65 and older were widowed, and 78.3% of women older than 84 were widowed (He, Sengupta, Velkoff, & DeBarros, 2005). At age 65 and older, 39.7% of women live alone compared to 18.8% of men of the same age. In addition, 20.4% of older women living alone live in poverty (He et al., 2005)