America’s senior population is expected to double to 71 million in less than 14 years. Between 2000 and 2030, the number of Americans 65 and older will increase from 12.4 percent to nearly 20 percent according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The increase reflects both the aging the bay boom generation and improvements in life expectancy.
Worldwide, the number of senior citizens is projected to more than double by 2031 from 420 million to 973 million.
What are the implications of this increase? There will be increased demands for health services from the government as well as tax abatement requests.. Where will these funds come from? In the United States, education is funded mainly through property taxes. Seniors are already voting against tax increases where those increase do not go to increasing their benefits. Schools take the largest chunk of local and state taxes and seniors who do not have children or even grandchildren in school have difficulty supporting children who are not their own.
Worldwide, education cuts are already taking place in countries where the population is rapidly aging (Italy,Spain, China, Japan) and where the economy is not doing well (Brazil, Spain, Japan, China.