Eight months after the COVID-19 pandemic began, the virus continues to transform the way Americans live, work and retire. Now with record case numbers and political division rocking the nation, the economic outlook appears uncertain.

Retirees and workers nearing retirement have been especially hard hit, according to the latest SimplyWise Retirement Index. Over a third of Social Security beneficiaries – 43 percent — now worry about outliving their savings in retirement. And 56 percent of Americans are willing to risk getting COVID in order to work, including 35 percent of seniors ages 60-plus. Other key findings:

• 71 percent of Americans aged 70-plus are concerned about Social Security running out, up from 29 percent in July and 54 percent in September.
• 47 percent of Americans experienced an attempted Social Security scam in the last three months.
• 74 percent of workers now plan to work in retirement.
• 19 percent of people in their 50s now plan to work full time in retirement.
• Nearly half of people laid off or furloughed because of COVID-19 saved nothing for retirement in the last year.
• 29 percent of 401(k) holders now are planning to withdraw early from that account to pay bills.
• 34 percent of Americans plan to change their investment strategy to keep more in cash accounts.
• 90 percent of Democrats vs. 63 percent of Republicans are willing to follow a national mask mandate if instituted.

"You need to do what is right for your own personal financial situation today to get through these challenging times," SimplyWise CEO Sam Abbas said. "But given the uncertainty, it's more important than ever that when you're back on your feet, you prioritize organizing your finances, building back emergency and retirement savings, and investing in the future."