The Harvard Generations Policy Program in conjunction with the Global Generations Policy Institute announced today the publication and release of their collaborative groundbreaking study Baby Boomer Women: Secure Futures or Not? As Paul Hodge, Director of the Harvard Generations Policy Program, has observed:

"Baby boomer women are in trouble. Unlike any other time in our nation’s history, unless there are dramatic policy shifts, in terms of absolute numbers, baby boomer women, most particularly minority women, will find their elder years to be a 'never ending' struggle. After selflessly caring for their children and aging parents, a significant number of our country’s 40 million plus boomer women will not be able to afford to retire, will fall below the poverty line and experience financial insecurity and poorer health in their later years with limited aid from traditional safety nets.

Many of our boomer women will not have secure retirement futures because of diverse and interrelated demographic, social, cultural, political and economic societal factors. Almost 30 million boomer women will face uncertain employment, financial, heath care, housing and retirement futures because of gender-biased public and private sector policies.

Now is the time for our nation to recognize the singular needs of women as they age and to develop and implement public and private policies which target and address this demographic reality. In the workplace, we must update policies to reflect the changes in family structures and accommodate the compelling needs of single parenting women. We must eliminate the "glass ceiling" and age/gender discrimination policies and practices in the work place.

We must guarantee our nation's baby boomer women and women of all ages an equal chance for capital accumulation, growth and retention in their working years and an abundant, secure and dignified quality of life in their increasingly vulnerable elder years.

Baby Boomer Women: Secure Futures or Not? is a unique study because it provides answers and solutions to women planning their employment, financial, retirement, health care and housing futures. It will stimulate informed dialogue among our nation's citizens and business, governmental, spiritual, nongovernmental and academic communities and will lead to the creation of caring, 'out-of-the-box', systems-focused, intergenerational national policies which address the critical needs of our nation's women."

About the Harvard Generations Policy Program: Founded in 2002, the Harvard Generations Policy Program is a groundbreaking initiative whose mission is to prepare Americans and their leaders for the aging of the nation’s baby boomers. The initiative provides “cutting edge” solutions to ensure that our nation’s baby boomers live fulfilling and abundant lives. The Harvard Generations Policy Program is located at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, 79 John F. Kennedy Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02138.

About the Global Generations Policy Institute: Founded in 2003, the Institute is a “first-of-its-kind” non-profit think tank whose mission is to raise awareness to the challenges arising from the aging of America’s baby boomer generation and other maturing global populations. The Institute provides unique national leadership in the development of policy solutions which ensure that all Americans live younger longer with lives abundant in retirement, employment, financial, housing, spiritual and health care resources. It is located at 124 Mt. Auburn Street Suite 200N, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138. Website: http://www.genpolicy.com.

For more information, please contact us at (617) 491-1171 or email us at genpolicy@genpolicy.com

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