Growsmart Maine is partnering with Kennebec Savings Bank to bring you this Portland Press Herald Policy Matters discussion on Women and Aging: A Crisis Unfolds. Join moderator Carol Coultas and panelists Jessica Maurer, executive director of the Maine Council on Aging, and Destie Hohman Sprague, executive director of Maine Women’s Lobby, on June 7 from 6:30 – 8 p.m. as they explore the policies and innovations to help aging Mainers.
A new Muskie School of Public Service report on economic security shows there are twice as many women as men over age 65 living alone in Maine. They also earn 20 percent less in retirement benefits – often the result of pay inequity and dropping in and out of the workforce to care for family members. Outdated policies around social services and a dearth of direct care workers mean many of Maine’s older residents face severe economic hardship and isolation, a situation more pronounced for women. What’s being done and what can be done?