More than half of the Island?s seniors over the age of 80 earn less than $12,000 a year, a study has found. And among the younger seniors, aged 65 to 79, one in four earn below $12,000.

But 80 percent of older seniors, and 70 percent of the younger ones, own and live in their own homes.

The study, conducted by Fordham University professors Irene Gutheil and Roslyn Chernesky, and funded by Bermuda-based charity Atlantic Philanthropies, was released yesterday. It also found that family caregivers were bearing the brunt of caring for seniors and that they were ?stretched to their limits?.

While Bermuda was similar to industrialised countries in many ways when it came to ageing, a key difference was a lack of adequate support services, Dr. Gutheil said at a press conference yesterday.

Besides living on limited financial resources, seniors are concerned about meeting healthcare costs and many of them are suffering depression and anxiety.

?A strong mental health response to the needs of the seniors would be extremely beneficial,? Dr. Gutheil said.

The study recommended a caregiver resource centre as a central clearing house for information and support services, and a care information centre which would serve as a resource for healthcare providers.

Attending yesterday?s press conference were Opposition MPs Michael Dunkley and Louise Jackson, Health Minister Patrice Minors and her Permanent Secretary Kevin Monkman and Ralph Richardson an advisory committee member representing the ACE Foundation.

The study took place from December last year to July, and was based on interviews with seniors, and surveys and focus groups of family caregivers and service providers. Roughly 500 people were surveyed. Many seniors (39 percent of the older and 28 percent in the younger grouping) reported that their health insurance was not enough for doctor visits. Similar percentages reported that their medication could not be fully covered by health insurance.

While the report makes for some dismal reading, it does conclude with some positive thoughts ? praising the resilience of the community of seniors, their carers and service providers, and suggesting that Bermuda could provide a ?model environment? for seniors.

?Bermuda is positioned to improve the lives of its seniors and their family caregivers. The country?s size and healthy economy are a combination of assets that few other countries have,? the conclusion reads.

?Bermuda has an opportunity to envision and create a model environment integrating focused public policy, an effective safety net, and an array of quality services.?

Mrs. Jackson greeted the report as a ?wonderful thing? which made her teary eyed.

?It?s brought tears to my eyes,? she said. ?The United Bermuda Party has been a voice in the wilderness. We have problems and it needs immediate action. The record of Government has been poor but I?m convinced that this report is going to turn things around.?

Mrs. Minors stressed that meeting the needs of seniors was not the purview of Government alone. And she repeated earlier announcements that Government would be tabling amendments to financial assistance regulations which penalise seniors who owned their own homes.

?We recognise the challenges of our seniors and our caregivers and this Minister will do the right thing to correct the situation.?

Mr. Dunkley told that he agreed with the general principal that Government should not be viewed as solely responsible for seniors issues, but said that it had to function as ?the lynchpin?.

?The problem up until now is they have been unwilling to be the lynchpin,? he said. And while much of the report was unsurprising, the burden being suffered by family caregivers was an issue ?much bigger than we expected,? said Mrs. Jackson.