Aging in Hawaii, or Graying in Paradise

The StarAdvertiser.com has published an excellent series on the "Graying of the Hawaii."  If you have elder loved ones here or are thinking of retiring in the Islands, you will appreciate their in-depth reporting.  Links to each article are listed below, with highlights.

1.  Graying of Hawaii: (Michael Tsai) For baby boomers, the spectrum of changes they have shaped and witnessed will be widely eclipsed by the ones still to come.

"The largest-ever generation of Americans begins an adventure of unimaginable proportion and consequence: old age. The change is perhaps the biggest yet for a generation used to major cultural, technological and political shifts.   The generation that defined youth culture in America faces an uncertain future as it reaches a very different sort of seniority than its predecessors. From now until the last of the baby boomers reaches age 65 in 2030, the U.S. senior population is expected to increase from 12 percent to 19 percent of the total U.S. population, thereby increasing the burden on a smaller population of working-age Gen-Xers and Millennials (those born between 1981 and 2006) to bear the cost of caring for aging boomers who may no longer be contributing to the tax base.

"The shift in Hawaii could be even more onerous as the local senior population balloons from 15% of all state residents this year to 23% in 2030, according to the state Department of Business Economic Development and Tourism.  The breadth of concern overlaps nearly every aspect of civic and personal life.  [For instance,]  How will Hawaii's public spaces have to adjust to meet the changing needs -- longer traffic lights, larger street signs, wider sidewalks -- of its older folks? And where will the money come from?  How will Hawaii families absorb the financial and personal responsibilities of caring for the longest-living seniors in the nation?

"In comparison with boomers on the mainland, local boomers are likely to live longer, have more formal education, have fewer children, have higher incidences of divorce and remarriage, and have a higher median family income."

2.  Boomers to Remain Politcally Powerful : (Michael Tsai)  Next year, when boomers start turning 65, younger taxpayers and lawmakers will confront the fallout of an historic shift in population demographics.

"The community [Hawaii] will certainly 'need' skilled baby boomer workers to continue working, at least for a decade or so, to minimize the expected experience gap in key industries and to soften the blow to Hawaii's tax base.  To be sure, the government will find a way to 'feed' the thousands of boomers who rely heavily on entitlement programs to make ends meet in Hawaii.  But it is no sure thing that other needs or wants of the senior population -- universal long-term care, assisted-living facilities, upgrades to infrastructure -- can or will be satisfied.  'This is likely an issue -- the conflict between young and old for diminishing resources,' said Jim Dator, a University of Hawaii professor of political science and director of the Hawaii Research Center for Futures Studies.

"According to AARP, people age 50 and older already constitute the largest voting population in Hawaii and across the country. AARP claims a membership of nearly 150,000 members in Hawaii, and a July poll indicated that 98 percent of respondents intended to vote this year (95 percent said they voted in 2008). In that survey, respondents identified the economy (27 percent), health care (24 percent) and retirement (13 percent) as their top priorities. Education ranked fourth at 11.5 percent.

"AARP Hawaii director Barbara Kim Stanton said boomers are already a uniquely potent political force in Hawaii.  They take a pragmatic, community-minded approach to political issues.  Those with ample financial resources will be able to determine their own destiny, while those who do not (the majority, according to U.S. Census data) will face difficult choices in how and where they will be able to live."

3.  Taking care of Seniors is not easy, but help is available:  Susan Essoyan

4.  All in the Family - Culture and cost place Senior Care on offspring's shoulders:  Susan Essoyan

5.  Uncertain Path Leads to Golden Years -  Hawaii faces challenges in living up to promises made for workers' retirements:  Alan Yonan, Jr.

6.  Older Workers' Qualities can be a Win-Win Situation:  Alan Yonan, Jr.

7.  State did not Plan Ahead for Workers' Retirement:  Kristen Consillio

8.  Aging Population Amplifies Health Care Shortages:  Kristen Consillio

9. Services Move to Technology, Team Care:  Kristen Consillio

"Hawaii's health care industry is preparing for a major overhaul with advances in technology, as well as an older population with more chronic conditions associated with aging. Redesigning the health care delivery system is a national movement based on a concept known as 'patient centered medical home,' which refers to a team-based model led by a personal physician who coordinates the care to improve results and reduce costs. 

"The University of Hawaii has a pilot project under way at the Hawaii Island Family Health Center on the Big Island, training pharmacists, nurses and doctors to care for patients in this coordinated team approach.  'It's going to be real different,' said Tina Shelton, spokeswoman for the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine. 'Multidisciplinary training is at the forefront of health care now.'  In recent years, it has become mandatory that UH medical school students be trained in geriatric problems so health professionals across the board will be able to identify age-related illnesses."

Hawaii is not unusual in facing the challenges of an aging population, although a large percentage of those will be expecting state retirement benefits.  The next years will require innovation, cooperation, and understanding by all demographic segments to face and deal humanely with the Graying of the nation and of Hawaii.  My thanks to the StarAdvertiser for an excellent presentation of this issue.