Episode Overview: Rising healthcare costs, changing workplace expectations and the continuing shift of retirement responsibility to individuals are reshaping the benefits landscape. In this episode, Dan Doonan talks with David Blumenstein about what these trends mean for employers, plan sponsors and workers - and why healthcare and retirement benefits must be considered together.

Their conversation explores the pressure healthcare inflation places on compensation and retirement savings, the enduring value of defined benefit pensions, and the potential for technology and artificial intelligence to improve benefits analysis, communication and decision-making. Blumenstein also discusses why critical thinking, problem solving and human judgment will remain essential as the field evolves.

In this Episode:

• How rising healthcare costs can leave employers with less room for wages and retirement contributions while increasing medical expenses for workers and retirees
• Why new treatments, telehealth and rapidly changing technology are transforming employee benefits
• How workers' expectations for immediate, easy-to-use digital tools are changing benefits communication
• Why many workers cannot simply save more for retirement when basic necessities already consume most of their income
• How defined benefit pensions provide lifetime income and reduce the financial decisions and risks individuals must manage on their own
• Where technology and AI can make benefits modeling and decision-making faster and more responsive
• Why strengthening retirement security requires action from employers, policymakers and other stakeholders - not individuals alone

About Guest David Blumenstein is board chair and immediate past president and CEO of Segal. Drawing on decades of experience working with employers and plan sponsors, he offers a broad view of the forces changing retirement, healthcare and workplace benefits.

Resources Mentioned:

• Retirement Insecurity 2026 - National Institute on Retirement Security
• 2027 Health Plan Cost Trend Survey - Segal
• Segal - Official website

About Retirement in America: Retirement in America is a podcast from the National Institute on Retirement Security examining the economic, workforce and policy trends influencing retirement security. Through expert insight and real-world experience, the podcast helps listeners better understand one of the most important financial issues facing American workers and families.

Why does retirement security feel increasingly out of reach for so many middle-class Americans?

In Episode 4 of Retirement in America, National Institute on Retirement Security Executive Director Dan Doonan sits down with Dr. Christian Weller, professor of public policy at the University of Massachusetts Boston, to examine the economic pressures making it harder for Americans to build financial security for retirement.

Weller explains why traditional measures of economic strength don't always reflect what families are experiencing. Rising housing and healthcare costs, longer periods of unemployment, caregiving responsibilities, and growing financial uncertainty can leave households with less money—and less capacity—to save for the future.

The conversation also explores how today's retirement system places significant responsibility and financial risk on individual workers. Doonan and Weller discuss the role pensions can play in providing greater financial security and peace of mind, as well as the need to expand retirement savings opportunities for workers who lack access to employer-sponsored plans.

Despite the challenges, Weller sees reasons for optimism, including the expansion of automatic retirement savings programs and a growing recognition that individuals shouldn't have to shoulder the burden of preparing for retirement entirely on their own.

Topics covered include:

• How the middle-class affordability squeeze is affecting retirement security
• Why housing and healthcare costs can make it harder for families to save
• What longer periods of unemployment mean for workers, particularly those approaching retirement
• How financial uncertainty and the "mental load" of managing competing expenses can affect long-term financial decisions
• Why pensions can provide workers with greater financial security and peace of mind
• How childcare and eldercare responsibilities can disrupt careers and retirement savings, particularly for women
• Why current retirement tax incentives disproportionately benefit higher-income households
• How state auto-IRA programs can expand retirement savings access for workers without employer-sponsored plans
• Why Weller sees signs of progress toward a retirement system that better shares responsibility and risk

Whether you're interested in retirement policy, affordability, the economy, workforce issues, or the financial pressures facing American families, this conversation offers an important look at how today's middle-class squeeze can shape tomorrow's retirement security.

More information: www.nirsonline.org

What happens when a state eliminates traditional pensions for teachers, police officers, firefighters, and other public employees?

In Episode 3 of Retirement in America, National Institute on Retirement Security Executive Director Dan Doonan sits down with Alaska State Representative Chuck Kopp—a former police chief and one of the leading architects of Alaska's effort to reform its public retirement system—to explore how one policy decision transformed the state's workforce.

Nearly two decades after Alaska became the only state in the nation to eliminate traditional pensions for most newly hired public employees, the state now faces severe shortages of teachers, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and other essential workers. Kopp explains how retirement benefits influence recruitment and retention, why experienced employees are leaving for states that still offer pensions, and how high turnover affects taxpayers, public services, and even student outcomes.

The conversation also examines Alaska's bipartisan effort to create a new shared-risk retirement plan—not a return to the state's former pension system, but a modern retirement design that combines elements of traditional pensions and defined contribution plans while sharing risk among employees, employers, and retirees. Although the legislation was ultimately vetoed by the governor, supporters plan to continue pursuing the proposal.

Topics covered include:

• Why Alaska faces some of the nation's most severe public workforce shortages
• How retirement benefits affect the recruitment and retention of teachers, police officers, firefighters, and other public employees
• The hidden costs of employee turnover for taxpayers and government services
• Why teacher turnover affects student learning and community stability
• Alaska's unique retirement challenges as one of the few states where many public employees are not covered by Social Security
• How lawmakers designed a fiscally responsible shared-risk retirement plan instead of simply restoring the old pension system
• Why the proposal attracted bipartisan support—and what comes next

Whether you're interested in retirement policy, workforce challenges, education, public safety, or state government, this conversation offers a compelling look at how retirement policy can shape the strength of communities and the delivery of essential public services.

More information: www.nirsonline.org

Americans are living longer than ever before—but are we prepared for what that means?

In Episode 2 of Retirement in America, National Institute on Retirement Security Executive Director Dan Doonan discusses this complex topic with Ken Dychtwald, founder and CEO of Age Wave and one of the nation's leading experts on aging, longevity, and retirement. Together, they explore how increasing life expectancy is reshaping retirement, work, healthcare, and financial security.

Ken discusses why he calls today's demographic transformation the "longevity revolution," how retirement has evolved into an entirely new stage of life, and why many Americans may be underestimating the challenges of financing decades in retirement. The conversation also examines the importance of health, social connection, purpose, and guaranteed retirement income in creating a secure and fulfilling retirement.

Ken and Dan look at innovative ideas for helping older Americans remain engaged and connected, including Ken's vision for an "AmeriCorps for older adults."

Topics covered include:

• How longer lifespans are changing retirement
• The future of work in an aging society
• Retirement income and financial security
• Health, well-being, and purpose in retirement
• The role of pensions and guaranteed income
• New ideas for supporting older Americans in the years ahead

Whether you're planning for retirement, already retired, or interested in the future of aging in America, this conversation offers valuable insights into one of the most significant demographic shifts of our time.

More information: www.nirsonline.org and https://agewave.com/who-we-are/the-team/ken-dychtwald/