3 Precarity and the welfare state in home and host countries
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Marion Repetti
Abstract
Retirement migration is not only about geographical movement but also about people navigating between the policies of different states, such as those related to old age, public health insurance and residence or citizenship requirements. In countries of the Global North like the UK, Switzerland and the US, older people often rely on welfare state benefits for their economic security and their access to healthcare. In this context, the economic and health benefits that retirement migrants receive from their home countries, as well as whether they can access their state pensions and local healthcare systems in their host countries, influence their decisions about whether and where to migrate. In this chapter, we use literature on work, retirement and health policies in later life to explore the political-economic contexts shaping the precarity of older people in the UK, Switzerland and the US.
Abstract
Retirement migration is not only about geographical movement but also about people navigating between the policies of different states, such as those related to old age, public health insurance and residence or citizenship requirements. In countries of the Global North like the UK, Switzerland and the US, older people often rely on welfare state benefits for their economic security and their access to healthcare. In this context, the economic and health benefits that retirement migrants receive from their home countries, as well as whether they can access their state pensions and local healthcare systems in their host countries, influence their decisions about whether and where to migrate. In this chapter, we use literature on work, retirement and health policies in later life to explore the political-economic contexts shaping the precarity of older people in the UK, Switzerland and the US.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Series editors’ preface iv
- List of tables vi
- Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction 1
- Retirement migration 13
- Precarity and the welfare state in home and host countries 28
- Escaping economic precarity 46
- Escaping ageism 67
- Relying on global privileges 89
- Health and assistance precarity in later life 104
- Retirement migration, precarity and age 118
- Notes 131
- References 132
- Index 146
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- Series editors’ preface iv
- List of tables vi
- Acknowledgements vii
- Introduction 1
- Retirement migration 13
- Precarity and the welfare state in home and host countries 28
- Escaping economic precarity 46
- Escaping ageism 67
- Relying on global privileges 89
- Health and assistance precarity in later life 104
- Retirement migration, precarity and age 118
- Notes 131
- References 132
- Index 146
