"True cost of aging" index shows many U.S. seniors can't afford basic necessities

Fran Seeley, 81, doesn't see herself as living on the edge of a financial crisis. But she's uncomfortably close.

Each month, Seeley, a retired teacher, gets $925 from Social Security and a $287 disbursement from an individual retirement account. To make ends meet, she's taken out a reverse mortgage on her Portland, Maine, home that yields $400 monthly.

So far, Seeley has been able to live on this income — about $19,300 a year — by carefully monitoring her spending and drawing on limited savings. But should her excellent health worsen or she need assistance at home, Seeley doesn't know how she'd pay for those expenses.