“Old Age and Fatigue as a Cause of Car Accidents”

“Old Age and Fatigue as a Cause of Car Accidents”

The September 2009 Newsletter from Spectrum Paralegal & More, LLC has a very interesting article on “Old Age and Fatigue as a Cause of Car Accidents.” This article can be found at www.spectrumparalegal.com. There are no shocking revelations in this article. But it does lead to some strikingly important Inviting Conversations. Please know that I have the utmost respect for our elders. Under no circumstance do I want this to come across as a Senior Citizen Bashing. But I am concerned that people are doing just the opposite. In order to avoid talking about the sensitive issues, good-hearted people are simply not facing a potentially catastrophic crisis in America. Please read the following demographics, and then please comment.

DEMOGRAPHICS
The number of Americans age 55 and older will almost double between now and 2030 – from 60 million today (21 percent of the total US population) to 107.6 million (31 percent of the population) – as the Baby Boomers reach retirement age.
During that same period of time, the number of Americans over 65 will more than double, from 34.8 million in 2000 (12 percent of the population) to 70.3 million in 2030 (20 percent of the total population).

Americans reaching age 65 today have an average life expectancy of an additional 17.9 years (19.2 years for females and 16.3 years for males).The likelihood that an American who reaches the age of 65 will survive to the age of 90 has nearly doubled over the past 40 years – from just 14 percent of 65-year-olds in 1960 to 25 percent at present. By 2050, 40 percent of 65-year-olds are likely to reach age 90.

http://www.experiencecorps.org/research/factsheet.html

Health Care? Independence? Family disputes upon death? Scammers taking advantage of the elderly? Driving? Lack of retirement planning? Poverty with the elderly? And ???

What are your biggest concerns about America’s growing senior population? More importantly, what needs to be done to properly prepare? Will the problem take care of itself?

Soon and very soon, there will be more Americans over the age of 65 than there are under 18.