Retirees from Argentina, one of the groups most affected by the economic adjustment carried out by the Government of Javier Milei, protest every Wednesday in front of the headquarters of Congress in demand for an increase in their pensions, full coverage of their medication and the continuity of the social security moratorium, which ends on March 23.

About 7.5 million older adults receive a retirement credit in Argentina, that is, 15.7% of the population.

63.5% of Argentine retirees receive the minimum retirement, which in this month of March is 279,121 pesos (256 dollars), an income that reached 349,121 pesos for the reinforcement bonus that social security grants since September 2022 due to the economic emergency situation that the country is experiencing.

About 5.4 million retirees receive less than 400,000 pesos ($357), well below the basic basket of retirees calculated by the Ombudsman for the Elderly taking official data as a reference and estimated at 1,200,523 pesos (1,120 dollars) for April of this year.

Eugenio Semino, defender of the Third Age of the City of Buenos Aires, recently warned EFE that there is a “humanitarian crisis in the elderly sector.”

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According to the Mirador de Actualidad del Trabajo y la Economía (MatE), each retiree lost since Milei assumed the Argentine Presidency more than 2.2 million pesos in 14 months.

In addition, more than eleven trillion pesos were no longer transferred to retirees, slightly less than what the Government spent on debt payments: 14 billion dollars (about 14 trillion pesos).

The vast majority of older adults cannot afford health expenses, the cost of which skyrocketed by 119% in 2024.

The Milei government ended the policy of free medicines for retirees.

Since last December, only members of the PAMI (Comprehensive Medical Assistance Program) have access to 100% coverage of medicines, that is, those with incomes below 418,682.56 pesos.

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Between two and three million retirees and pensioners would be left out of total drug coverage.

Retirees demand the continuity of the social security moratorium, which ends next Sunday, March 23, and the Government has already said that it will not extend it.

This measure, which has been maintained for more than 20 years in Argentina, allows those who reach the required minimum age without having gathered the amount of contributions required by the social security law (30 years) to access a retirement immediately through a payment plan.

From March 23, people who turn 60 or 65, the retirement age of women and men, respectively, will no longer be able to access a pension if they do not have at least 30 years of contributions or contributions.

On the other hand, those over 65 years of age may receive a Universal Pension for the Elderly (PUAM) for an amount equivalent to 80% of a minimum retirement, which is updated by the Mobility Law.

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Between 2022 and 2024, on average, about 425,000 people per year retired, about 70% did so with moratoriums, 17% in the general regime, 9% with a PUAM and the other 4% by some special regime. Without further moratoriums, it is estimated that almost 80% will have a PUAM.

This Wednesday’s retirement mobilization is once again supported by unions and social movements.