Highlights from 2025 and Coming Attractions for 2026

1.  Who Works After Claiming Social Security?

While Social Security aims to replace wages for those no longer working, about 40 percent of beneficiaries do work at some point after claiming. Most are low earners who claim around 62 and work part time, while the rest tend to be high earners who often work full time after claiming in their mid-60s.

2.  How Do Retirees Cope with Long-Term Costs?

Long-term care is generally not well insured. Very few households have private insurance and many say they plan to rely on Medicaid, but only a small fraction will qualify. So, when hit with shocks, they often end up tapping home equity and planning to leave less money to their kids.

3.  Can We Help People Better Estimate Their Life Expectancy?

Many people underestimate how long they will live. In a recent experiment, providing simple information on longevity helped about a quarter of people – specifically those who rely on experts. But this tactic was ineffective for the majority, who rely on their parent’s experience instead.

4.  How Well Do We Measure Retirement Well-being?

While financial metrics suggest many people will fall short in retirement, most retirees say they are satisfied with their lives. Perhaps not surprisingly, objective measures – such as health and income – are generally poor predictors of satisfaction, suggesting new ways to capture well-being are needed.

5.  What Is the CRR Reading Now?

Staying informed can be overwhelming. In this new biweekly feature, we share the articles, blogs, and papers that have particularly caught our attention and made us think.

1.  Mitigating Retirement Risk

Continuing a major initiative with Jackson National Life Insurance, our focus in 2026 will be on how people think about and respond to: 1) policy risk, which stems from uncertainty over government actions; and 2) family risk, which is driven by unanticipated financial needs involving family members.

2.  Investing in Equities to Boost Social Security Solvency?

Investing Social Security reserves in equities has long been floated as one way to shore up program finances. However, today’s dwindling trust fund balances mean fewer assets to invest. The conventional approach would boost balances through program reforms, while another would borrow to invest. We will evaluate both alternatives.

3.  New Database for Research to Help Retirees Stay in Their Homes

We're building a web portal on state Medicaid coverage for home-and-community-based services. Users will be able to track covered services, benefit generosity, and policy changes to explore what works best. A preview of the data is now available, with the full user-friendly version coming later this year.

4.  Can Advisors Convince Small Firms to Adopt Retirement Plans?

The retirement plan coverage gap is driven by small employers. A new survey will explore whether accountants, lawyers, and financial advisors who work with small firms can impact their decision to sponsor a plan. 

5.  Who Can – and Cannot – Save More for Retirement?

Not all households have the same capacity to increase retirement saving. By identifying the characteristics of those who can save more, this study will inform policies that boost savings without imposing hardship on financially vulnerable families.

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