Joe Franklin

Members of the baby boomer generation worry that the shiny assets they expected to fund their golden years of retirement may turn into lead.

The villain? Inflation.

Joe Franklin, branch manager of Raymond James & Associates Inc.’s office in Hixson, said his baby boomer clients fret most about the rising costs of everyday expenses.

“Their biggest concerns are the price of gas and food going up faster than inflation rates,” Mr. Franklin said. “The official inflation rate of 4 percent is not what they experience.”

Inflation ranks at the top of retirement concerns among baby boomers, according to recent report from the Society of Actuaries.

The report finds pre–retirees and retirees are worried about keeping the value of their assets up with inflation as well as having enough money to pay for long-term care, adequate health care and maintaining a reasonable standard of living after the loss of a spouse — all of which also are influenced by inflation.

From high food and medicine prices to an unprecedented rise in the cost of gasoline, inflation’s effects are far-reaching. For the 78 million baby boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, the volatile economy is changing how they will live during retirement — or even if they can retire.

“We are retired, but some of our members are unable to attend chapter meetings because they are working,” said Tom Swanson, president of the Chattanooga Chapter of TVA Retirees Association. “It is amazing how many of the retiree members have jobs, either to keep busy or to supplement their retirement savings.”

Inflation in medical costs is particularly worrisome for baby boomers who may require long-term care, according to the Society of Actuaries survey. The report uses nursing home care as an example, saying those costs may reach $70,000 or more per person per year.

The same report finds worries about catastrophic illness — where costs not covered by Medicare for an over-65 retired couple can exceed $1 million during a lifetime — also are prompting baby boomers to adjust retirement plans and planning.

Financial planners now include disability and long-term insurance, along with life insurance, as part of the mix for aging baby boomers.

“A lot of what you thought would be available for living is now going to one insurance premium after another,” Mr. Swanson said.

Seniors who assumed they would be able to travel during their golden years never considered the changes of today’s global economy — one with a devalued dollar and rising costs of fuel and no cheap airfares

“Those that are already retired are forced to live within their means,” Mr. Swanson said. “What you thought you were going to be able to do is no longer possible.”

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