Women of color are particularly at risk for poverty in their old age. Overall, there is a substantial gender gap in all sources of retirement income including Social Security, pensions, savings, and post-retirement employment. The greatest disparity lies in accumulated pension wealth and savings, with Social Security credits partially compensating for this gap. Furthermore, the Social Security system is progressive. Those with lower incomes have a higher proportion of their earnings replaced, which is valuable for women since they tend to earn less than men do.
Women make up the vast majority of recipients using the spousal benefit provision.
Another aspect of Social Security that is especially valuable to women is the life and disability insurance, which includes benefits to spouses caring for children under 16 if the worker retires, becomes disabled, or dies. Certainly, it is true that people are living longer and that prudent financial planning dictates that the government should maintain adequate reserves. To the extent there are long-term solvency concerns, there are a number of ways to increase revenue into Social Security. Investing a portion of the Trust Fund in higher-yield public or private securities is another option. This recommendation differs from proposals that privatize Social Security through individual accounts because investments would be made by a central, independent organization, sharing risk across the entire system and holding down administrative costs.