The aging U.S. population

Abstract

In 2000, there were 35 million people aged 65 or older in the United States comprising 12.4% of the U.S. population. Furthermore, over 4 million Americans were aged 85 or older comprising 1.5% of the total population (U.S. Census, 2000). The number of older Americans is 10 times higher now than it was in 1900 when there were only 3 million people aged 65 years and older. At that time, older people accounted for only 4% of the total population (Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics, 2000, 2006). By 2030, in the United States the number of older people will double to 70 million and the proportion of people aged 65 or older will approach 20% of the total population. This increase in the proportion of older people represents the continuation of a long-standing trend. For example, life expectancy was 46 years in 1900 and increased to 77 years a century later. In fact, the 2000 U.S. Census reported over 50,000 centenarians in the United States. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.