Sharing increasing costs on declining income: the visible dilemma of the invisible aged.
The federal government considers all persons aged 65 and over a single beneficiary group, and data collectors consider them a single cohort. As a result, the very old (80 years and over) are virtually invisible; little is known about their specific income benefits and economic resources. Costs for the very old--a more economically diverse group than the nonaged--are likely to grow disproportionately. Recent proposals to share costs will affect the distribution of income and assets among the aged and between generations.
D000368:Aged; D003363:Cost Control; D005260:Female; D006295:Health Resources / Q000600:supply & distribution; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income; D008297:Male; D006278:Medicare / Q000191:economics; D012943:Social Security; D014481:United States