AFSCME Information Highway

Source: National Institute on Aging/National Center for Health Statistics

From press release (Word; 606 KB):
Average life expectancy continues to increase, and today's older Americans enjoy better health and financial security than any previous generation. However, rates of gain are inconsistent between the genders and across age brackets, income levels and racial and ethnic groups. Some critical disparities also exist between older Americans and older people in other industrialized countries. These and other trends are reported in Older Americans 2008: Key Indicators of Well-Being, a unique, comprehensive look at aging in the United States from the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics.

Report (various sections/formats)
PowerPoint slides of charts
Excel spreadsheets

Posted by William at 10:56 AM in Older People | Permalink

Source: Congressional Research Service (via OpenCRS)

Energy-related expenditures include spending for utilities and fuel to operate, heat, and cool homes and spending for gasoline and motor oil for private transportation. Energy prices to consumers have increased 70% between 2000 and 2007, driven largely by growth in prices for energy commodities such as petroleum. Petroleum-based products such as fuel oil, propane and gasoline comprise about 50% of household energy expenditures. Older Americans are disproportionately affected by higher energy costs. As a share of income, households headed by a person age 65 or older spend more on energy-related expenditures than their younger counterparts. In addition, low-income households (those with less than $15,000 in household income) spent nearly 20% of their household income on energy-related expenditures in 2006 (the latest year for which data are available). This compares to 7.3% spent by older households with incomes above $15,000. These estimates are for 2006 and do not reflect the additional 17% increase in energy prices that occurred in 2007. The key public program that provides energy assistance to low-income households is the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Approximately 40% of low-income households that were eligible for LIHEAP have a household member aged 60 or older. Funding for the LIHEAP Program has not kept pace with recent increases in energy costs of older Americans. This report will explore the burden of rising energy costs on older Americans and discuss implications for public policies. This report will be updated when new data is released.

Full Report (PDF; 69 KB)

Posted by Info Center at 8:34 AM in Older People | Permalink

Source: Administration on Aging, Snapshots, 2008

Statistics: A Statistical Profile of Older Americans Aged 65+

▪ Older men were much more likely to be married than older women-72% of men, 42% of women in 2006. 43% of all older women in 2006 were widows.
▪ About 30 percent (10.7 million) noninstitutionalized older persons live alone (7.8 million women, 2.9 million men).
▪ Half of older women age 75+ live alone.

A Statistical Profile Of Black Older Americans Aged 65+

▪ The Black or African American older population was 3.1 million in 2006 and is projected to grow to over 10.4 million by 2050. In 2006, African American persons made up 8.3 percent of the older population.
▪ By 2050, the percentage of the older population that is African American is projected to account for 12 percent of the older population.

A Statistical Profile of Hispanic Older Americans Aged 65+

▪ The Hispanic older population was 2.4 million in 2006 and is projected to grow to over 15 million by 2050. In 2006, Hispanic persons made up 6.4 percent of the older population.
▪ By 2050, the percentage of the older population that is Hispanic is projected to account for 17.5 percent of the older population.
▪ By 2028, the Hispanic population aged 65 and older is projected to be the largest racial/ethnic minority in this age group.

Posted by Info Center at 4:59 PM in Older People | Statistics | Permalink

Source: Lauren Eyster, Richard W. Johnson, Eric Toder, Urban Institute, March 4, 2008

From the summary:
As the U.S. population ages and the number of people reaching traditional retirement ages increases, employers need to do more to attract and retain older workers, many of whom are highly experienced, knowledgeable, and skilled. Successful approaches include offering formal and informal phased retirement options and creating flexible work arrangements, such as part-time work, flexible schedules, job sharing, telework arrangements, and snowbird programs. Federal, state, and local governments, as well as nonprofit organizations and post-secondary educational institutions, help older workers find employment and secure job training. They also educate employers about the value of older workers.

Posted by Info Center at 3:30 PM in Older People | Workforce | Permalink

Source: Joseph Lubarsky, BDO Seidman LLP and Eljay LLC, American Health Care Association, September 2007

From the press release:
A new independent analysis of the nation's Medicaid program by the accounting firms BDO Seidman/Eljay,LLC estimates states are underfunding the actual cost of providing seniors' critical nursing home care by at least $4.4 billion annually, or, $13.15 per patient day - representing a dramatic 45% increase from 1999 ($9.05) through 2007. The new study also found that the states with the greatest disparity between the actual cost of providing quality care and Medicaid reimbursements are, in order of severity, Illinois, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Vermont, New Hampshire, Missouri, Delaware, Washington and Massachusetts.

Posted by Info Center at 6:01 PM in Health Care | Older People | Permalink

Source: Consumers Union, October 1, 2007

From the press release:
Consumers Union's latest sampling of Medicare prescription drug plans again finds that most insurers hike the cost of their drugs during the year - in one extreme case by 28 percent. The data calls for major changes in the law to protect seniors against bait and switch-type practices as the open enrollment season approaches.

"It makes no sense to ask a senior to carefully shop around in October and sign up for a drug plan, when the plan just turns around a few months later and dramatically hikes the cost of the medicines," said Bill Vaughan, senior health policy analyst for Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports.
• Latest tracking data

Posted by Info Center at 5:26 PM in Health Care | Older People | Prescription Drugs | Permalink

Source: Christine Vestal, Stateline.org, October 05, 2007

Maryland, California, Virginia and other states are recruiting retirees to work in public schools as volunteers and salaried employees, offering boomers what they say they want -- meaningful second careers.

Posted by Info Center at 2:31 PM in Education | Older People | Permalink

Source: Richard W. Johnson, Urban Institute, Discussion Paper 07-05, September 24, 2007

From the summary:
The economic burden of an aging population depends partly on older adults' employment rates, which in turn depend partly on employers' willingness to hire and retain them. This report reviews the literature on managerial attitudes toward older workers. Although the available evidence is incomplete and sometimes inconsistent, many firms appear to have serious reservations about older workers. Employment prospects may be especially bleak for rank-and-file workers and those with limited skills. Managerial attitudes toward older workers may improve in the future, however, as the population and workforce age.

Posted by Info Center at 4:05 PM in Older People | Workforce | Permalink

Source: Patricia Neuman, Michelle Kitchman Strollo, Stuart Guterman, William H. Rogers, Angela Li, Angie Mae C. Rodday, and Dana Gelb Safran, Health Affairs, Vol. 26, no. 5, published online 21 August 2007

A national survey in 2006 found that Part D secured drug coverage for most seniors who were without it in 2005, prior to the Medicare drug benefit. Seniors without drug coverage in 2006 generally fell into two groups: those in relatively good health and those potentially difficult to reach. Compared with seniors covered through employer plans or the Department of Veterans Affairs, Part D enrollees had higher out-of-pocket spending and greater cost-related nonadherence. Low-income subsidies offered protection against high out-of-pocket spending; without them, one-third of Part D enrollees at or below 150 percent of poverty paid more than $100 a month for their medications.

Posted by Info Center at 11:53 AM in Health Care | Older People | Permalink

Source: Craig Copeland, Employee Benefit Research Institute, Vol. 28 no. 8, August 2007

From press release:

As an increasing percentage of older Americans are in the labor force, the trend toward more full-time, full-year work among older workers occurs across virtually every demographic group, according to an article published today by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI).

These trends mark a significant change in behavior for individuals age 55 and older, the article says, and are likely driven by their need to obtain affordable employment-based health insurance (as opposed to unaffordable or unavailable coverage in the individual market) and the need to continue to accumulate savings in employment-based defined contribution retirement plans.

Posted by Info Center at 5:02 PM in Benefits | Health Care | Older People | Retirement | Workforce | Permalink

Source: Freddi Karp, Editor, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, NIH Publication No. 07- 5757, March 2007

There is no question that the aging of America will have a profound impact on individuals, families, and U.S. society. The Health and Retirement Study (HRS), sponsored by the National Institute on Aging under a cooperative agreement with the University of Michigan, follows more than 20,000 men and women over 50, offering insight into the changing lives of the older U.S. population. Launched in 1992, this multidisciplinary, longitudinal study has become known as the Nation’s leading resource for data on the combined health and economic conditions of older Americans.

Growing Older in America: The Health & Retirement Study describes the breadth and depth of the HRS to help familiarize a broad range of researchers; policymakers; media; and organizations concerned with health, economics, and aging with this data resource. Published in 2007, this colorful data book describes the HRS’s development and features and offers a snapshot of research findings based on analyses of the Study’s data. Sections of the report look at older adults’ health, work and retirement, income and wealth, and family characteristics and intergenerational transfers. More than 65 figures and tables illustrate the text.

Posted by Info Center at 1:41 PM in Health Care | Older People | Retirement | Permalink

Source: Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics, May 2006

From the intro:
As the baby boom generation anticipates retirement, a growing proportion of older Americans are in fact remaining in the workforce. Labor force participation rates for older women have increased significantly since the mid-1980s, and for older men, since the mid-1990s, according to an updated report from the government’s Federal Forum on Aging-Related Statistics. The labor force statistics are among several updated facts and figures in the Forum’s databook series on aging.

The Forum is comprised of 13 federal departments and agencies which collect, provide, and use data on aging. It produces periodic chartbooks with key statistical indicators about older Americans, presenting data on the overall status of the U.S. population age 65 and over and monitoring changes in these indicators over time. The report is designed to serve policymakers, the media, and the public with an interest in information on the well-being of older Americans.

These newest entries are part of Older Americans Update 2006: Key Indicators of Well-Being and provide updated information on a variety of topics, including labor force participation, leading causes of death, health care use, and other important areas.

Posted by Info Center at 4:41 PM in Older People | Permalink