Introducing the "oldest old"

Abstract

The mounting numbers of the very old--their percentage of the population will double in the next 15 years--is so new a phenomenon that there is little in historical experience to help in interpreting it. Not only are the older living longer, but they are also growing older in markedly different ways from their predecessors. The work at hand, still partial and tentative, indicates that the oldest old can no longer remain invisible in the economy, the polity, the health care system, or the statistical records.

PIP: Although the oldest segment of the population is currently the fastest growing, less is known about it than about any other age category. In the US, those aged 85 and over now constitute 1% of the population and are projected to increase to 1.9% by the year 2000 and to 5.2% by 2050. This issue illuminates the unique features of the oldest old today and in the near future, in contrast both to those just entering later life and to the old in other periods of history. Those aged 85 and over have a unique sex ratio--a much greater excess of females over males than any other age category. They are currently much more likely to be living in institutions, less likely to be married, and more likely to have low educational attainment. They consume an amount of services, benefits, and transfers far out of proportion to their numbers. While nearly 1/4 of the oldest old are institutionalized and among the noninstitutionalized oldest old some 43% need the help of another to function in aaily life, there is another 57% who declare themselves free of any limitations and are able to function without the help of another. Perhaps the most critical question for the future is how healthy the oldest old will be. A summary review of the literature confirms that at almost all levels, from the physiologic to the demographic, little valid or reliable information exist on this population.