4 The Hampton Roads Messenger Editorial Take Control of Your Life in 2014


for Disease Control, the National Institute of Health and WebMD.


Books and Internet research


should not take the place of an examination by a qualified physician. Although, by the time one visits a physician, one should already have a written list of questions prepared to ask their doctor pertaining to their condition or their overall health. Often times a trip to a doctor's office can be unsettling; that is why it is important for one to prepare a written list of their health questions and concerns in advance.


After one has taken charge of BY ANGELA JONES There are some aspects of our


lives that we cannot control such as aging, the weather, and the actions of others. Actually, I had a difficult time identifying things that we cannot control in our lives. This means that one has the power to change most of the difficulties in their life. The approaching New Year is an opportune time to work on making those changes.


Taking control of one's life


should begin with taking control of one's health. People should consider themselves their first line of defense against disease. The first step in defending oneself against disease is to educate one's self on diseases' various causes, symptoms and remedies. There are excellent books on the market that provide a wealth of health information including Dr. James Balch, MD's book titled “Prescription for Nutritional Healing.” This book is self described as “A comprehensive and up-to-date self-help approach to health” with a “practical A-Z reference to drug-free remedies using vitamins, minerals, herbs and food supplements.”


There is also a plethora of


information about health matters on the Internet; however, one should not believe everything they read online. There is actually information on the Internet that can be detrimental to one's health; therefore it is important to only seek guidance online from reputable sources such as the Centers


their health, one can focus on the health and well being of their family. In this instance, it is not selfish for one to tend to their own needs before trying to cater to the needs of their family. Keep in mind the safety instructions that are given on an airplane; travelers are told to cover their nose and mouth with their oxygen mask first, and then, help their children with their masks. People cannot be of service to their family if their health or safety is compromised. Usually when family members see the positive results of another family member's dedication to controlling their own destiny, they will follow suit. Most of the time, simply leading by example is enough.


Finally, everyone should take


control of their finances in 2014. Gone are the days when one income source was enough to make ends meet. Today, and in 2014, most people will need multiple streams of income to live comfortably. A job with a decent wage is good, but it is not something on which one can depend. A job can end at any moment; therefore, having income from a home-based or Internet business or investments, such as stocks, bonds and real estate, in addition to income from a job, can help a family build lasting wealth.


Although focusing on family


life and setting goals to improve one's wealth are extremely important, without good health, one may not survive long enough to achieve their desired goals; therefore, improving our health should be our first priority. It is never too soon to begin laying the ground work to ensure that we live to see 2014 while building a strong family, and wealth to support it, well into the future.


Volume 8 Number 4


December 2013


Social Security Denied to Many Ethnic Elders


BY PAUL KLEYMAN Even in this period


of intense national debate over the National Debt, Americans fiercely want to protect Social Security from benefit cuts. But while 40 million seniors received


retirement


support from the program in 2012, about one in 10 seniors in the United States don’t qualify for Social Security, leaving many without a safety net.


Of the approximately 4 million


U.S. seniors not receiving Social Security old age support, a dispro- portionate one-third are ethnic elders. In fact, according to the U.S. Census, one-in-six African American, one fifth of Latino—and nearly one-in-three (29 percent) Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) seniors cannot draw on the national retirement pension program to make financial ends meet


African Americans “Under the Radar” Many older African Americans


who don’t qualify for Social Security “have lived under the radar because they have worked in domestic roles and been paid cash for their labors” with no contributions going to the program, said Karyne Jones, president and CEO of the National Caucus and Center on Black Aging (NCBA) based in Washington, D.C.


Jones continued, “With most


women, it's the child rearing and caregiving years that don't rake up any credit towards Social Security.” She added, “Let us not forget chronic unemployment.”


Also affecting access to Social


Security support, she and other experts said, may be the high incarceration level among black men. As they get released at older ages, many will end up with little or no Social Security benefits. This would leave their spouses with inadequate incomes later in life.


Because the Social Security


Administration calculates retirement benefits based on credits people receive for at least 40 quarters of covered work—10 years’ worth during one’s working life, she said, many African Americans paid cash or under the table don’t realize they benefit from the program “until it’s too late.”


Ineligibility for Social Security


is particularly high for immigrants. Many who arrive at age 50 or older end up with very low coverage or none at all. About half of Hispanic seniors in the U.S. and 80 percent of older Asian Americans who receive no Social Security support are either naturalized citizens or immigrants.


While undocumented immigrants


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are flatly ineligible for U.S. benefits, many legally present immigrants do not have enough documented years of work to quality for eligibility.


Financial security for the growing


number of black and other ethnic elders is a looming issue. A poll released in


September by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies found, “Nearly half of black Americans (46 percent) — and about a third of white Americans (36 percent) — say they would ‘like to save for retirement, but don’t seem to have enough money to do so.’”


Wilhelmina Leigh, who


coauthored the survey report, stated in an earlier study, “Modifying the Social Security system must include voices of African Americans and other racial/ethnic subpopulations whose dependence on the system is great, but whose patterns of usage may differ from the norm.”


Barriers Facing Immigrants Making ends meet is especially


difficult for Asian retirees. Those who do get Social Security checks average $2,000 a year ($13,066) less than the total for all U.S. retirees, says a 2011 report from the Insight Center. Pacific Islanders receive even smaller benefits--if any at all--says the study. For instance, Native Hawaiian seniors, because so many had low-wage jobs, average Social Security benefits of less than half that of other Hawaiian elders, including other Asians.


The Insight Center report’s author


Meizhu Lui noted cultural and other barriers to assistance for Asian and other immigrants. “Language barriers lead to a lack of knowledge about the Social Security program,” she wrote.


Among other barriers to Social


Security that Asian elders encounter, says Lui, are “cultural aversions to large bureaucracies, pride in being independent and a fear of government based on home-country experiences can make eligible foreign-born Asian seniors hesitant to apply.”


A University of Southern


California analysis of Latino retirement cites another reason for many low-income immigrants. It calls agricultural labor “a telling example of sub-minimum wage employment where salaries and Social Security contributions for workers often go unreported.”


Ironically, the Social Security


Administration has estimated that unauthorized immigrants contributed more than $12 billion alone to the program’s trust fund in 2010 more than the $1 billion the agency says it paid out in fraudulent benefits to undocumented residents. Many undocumented immigrants pay into the system through jobs they got using fake Social Security cards. But they can never collect benefits when they need them.


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