A recent Associated Press article highlights the fact that the economic crisis is hitting retirees and seniors especially hard. Citing AARP statistics, the story reported that people 55 and older made up almost a quarter of the bankruptcy filings in 2007, and that bankruptcy rates quadrupled for seniors ages 75 to 84. Medical bills, the leading cause of bankruptcy, is largely to blame, but the stock market’s nosedive has left many retirees with a withered nest egg.