By the year 2050, it’s estimated that Americans aged 60 and older will total 112 million. In the early part of the 20th Century, just 5 million lived to that age. Representative Kerry Conway of the Area 10 Agency on Aging, Inc. says that focus needs to shift from long-term facilities to care givers and seniors. “We have a system in Indiana right now that is focused more on long term care facilities than on home based facility care” says Conway. She says that Indiana ranks 49 out of 50 states in terms of how we balance the money we provide for care in nursing facilities as opposed to money in communities. She also says that this distribution goes against the preference of most elderly individuals, who indicate a desire to remain in their homes, as opposed to receiving care elsewhere.

A big question related to the increase in elderly numbers, as well as their tendency to live longer, is the economic and social impact that such a large demographic will have on the United State’s economy. Dr. Kosali Simon, professor at Indiana University, notes that the growth of the demographic requires change in the U.S.’s economic system, mainly due to changing perspectives. “If you think you’re going to live longer, you’re going to act in ways that are different,” says Simon. Examples of this kind of action include saving more for retirement, investing in education, and other, more long-term goals then what traditionally has been sought.

No longer is retirement thought of in terms of years, but rather decades, and an entire system needs to adjust.

Tags: administration on aging., Area 10 agency, Brooke Aloe, department of health, elderly and wellness, Erik Plasker, future of aging, Indiana health, InFocus, Kosali Simon, life expectancy, living longer, Meadow wood, Shameka Neely, Stan Jastrzebski, WTIU

With the average life expectancy of people on a continued incline, the question often gets asked as to whether the quality of life increases at the same rate. The answer, as one might expect, is as gray as the hair on an aging adult. Lifestyle choices play an obvious role.

Dr. Erik Plasker, author of The 100 Year Lifestyle says, “I wonder what the quality of life and longevity potential would be if people just lived good, healthy lifestyles that would be conducive… to quality of life as people age.”

At times however, there exists a backlash against this increased life expectancy. “We look at this generation…and say ‘wow I don’t know if I want to live that long because I don’t want to be like that,” says Plasker. This is due to the older generation being what Dr. Plasker calls a “blindside by longevity,” and suggests that if we prepare for it, a long life could be quite enjoyable.

Tags: administration on aging., Area 10 agency, Brooke Aloe, department of health, elderly and wellness, Erik Plasker, future of aging, Indiana health, InFocus, Kosali Simon, life expectancy, living longer, Meadow wood, Shameka Neely, Stan Jastrzebski, WTIU

It’s no secret that people are living longer. The question that remains however is what impact these longer lives will have on the many social institutions in the United States. One effect is seen in the continually increasing age limit of Social Security, which suggests that the nation’s many social agencies are lagging behind natural human progress. “The system needs a complete and total reinvention,” say Dr. Erik Plasker, author of The 100 Year Lifestyle, “it’s not really a health care system, it’s a crisis care system.”

Tags: administration on aging., Area 10 agency, Brooke Aloe, department of health, elderly and wellness, Erik Plasker, future of aging, Indiana health, InFocus, Kosali Simon, life expectancy, living longer, Meadow wood, Shameka Neely, Stan Jastrzebski, WTIU