National Retirement Security Week: Retirement security is about more than savings
Originally published 10/10/2023, Updated on 9/29/2026
Each October, National Retirement Security Week encourages Americans to consider whether they are prepared for retirement. Although much of that conversation understandably focuses on savings, financial security also depends on anticipating the expenses someone will face throughout retirement.
As Americans live longer and potentially spend decades in retirement, preparing for healthcare expenses and making informed coverage decisions can play an important role in protecting long-term financial security.
The retirement security conversation is changing
Concerns about retirement readiness remain widespread. According to the National Institute on Retirement Security’s 2026 Retirement Insecurity survey, 61% of Americans are concerned they will not achieve financial security in retirement and 80% believe the nation is facing a retirement crisis.¹
At the same time, Americans are living longer. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. life expectancy at birth reached 79.0 years in 2024.² For individuals approaching retirement, greater longevity can mean planning for 20, 30 or more years of expenses after leaving the workforce.
Healthcare can represent a significant portion of retirement expenses. Many retirees may need to plan for healthcare costs that can exceed $150,000 over the course of retirement, not including long-term care.
Taken together, these trends point to a broader definition of retirement readiness. Accumulating sufficient retirement income remains critical, but so does preparing for the cost of healthcare and understanding how healthcare coverage will work once employer-sponsored coverage ends.
Healthcare security starts before retirement
Employers have long played an important role in helping employees prepare financially for retirement. There is also an opportunity to help employees think earlier about healthcare as part of that planning.
For employees enrolled in a qualified high-deductible health plan, a Health Savings Account (HSA) can be one tool for preparing for future healthcare expenses. HSAs offer tax advantages and, unlike flexible spending accounts, unused balances can remain available from year to year. Employees who are able to preserve and invest those funds over time can build a dedicated resource for qualified healthcare expenses later in life.
Saving for healthcare, however, addresses only part of the challenge. As employees approach retirement, they face a different set of decisions: when and how to enroll in Medicare, which coverage options best fit their individual needs, how prescription drug coverage factors into those decisions and how much they should expect to spend.
Those decisions can be complex, and they do not end at retirement.
From retirement readiness to retirement navigation
Because healthcare needs, medications, plan availability and costs can all change, coverage that works well for someone at age 65 may no longer be the best fit several years later. That makes ongoing healthcare navigation an important component of retirement security.
Employers can help bridge the gap between preparing employees financially for retirement and helping them successfully navigate what comes next. That can include education about healthcare expenses during the working years, opportunities to build dedicated healthcare savings and support evaluating coverage as employees transition to Medicare and throughout retirement.
Via Benefits helps organizations provide that support. Through personalized guidance, decision-support tools and access to individual healthcare coverage options, Via Benefits helps retirees evaluate coverage based on their individual healthcare and financial needs and continue to reassess those decisions as circumstances change.
A broader view of retirement security
National Retirement Security Week is an opportunity to look beyond a single retirement savings number.
For employers, supporting retirement readiness can mean helping employees prepare not only for the income they will need after their careers end but also for one of the most consequential expenses they may face.
Helping people prepare financially for retirement is important, but true retirement security also means helping them navigate healthcare once they get there.
*WTW is not an accounting firm or a law firm and does not provide any legal, accounting or tax advice or opinions. All accounting information should be verified by your accountants, and you should consult your legal counsel and/or tax advisors with respect to any legal or tax questions.
Sources:
Butrica, Barbara, Dan Doonan, and Kelly Kenneally. Retirement Insecurity 2026: Americans' Views of Retirement. National Institute on Retirement Security, 26 Aug. 2026, National Institute on Retirement Security Report.
Tretina, Kat. “How To Save For Retirement.” Forbes Advisor, 18 Apr. 2023, How To Save For Retirement.
