Final answer:
From 1970 to 2016, the poverty rate of older adults in the U.S. has decreased significantly, dropping from 30% in the late 1960s to around 9.7% in 2008, with a slight increase to 14% by 2010 due to the Great Recession.
Step-by-step explanation:
The poverty rate of older adults in the United States has decreased significantly from 1970 to 2016. In 1967, the poverty rate among people over sixty-five years old was at 30 percent but fell to 9.7 percent by 2008, well below the national average. This decrease represented a considerable improvement for the financial wellbeing of the elderly. However, the Great Recession had an impact, with the poverty rate rising to 14 percent by 2010. Nonetheless, this was still a significant drop from the rate in the late 1960s. The trend over time reveals that the U.S. has made progress in reducing senior poverty rates from a high of 29.5% in 1967 to about 10.2% in 2022, evidencing a long-term decline despite short-term fluctuations.