Getting ready for aging boomers
By Judy Lin - Bee Capitol Bureau
Published 12:00 am PDT Thursday, September 28, 2006
Like the rest of the nation, California is graying at a pretty fast clip.
The state's elder population is expected to grow from one in 10 residents to one in seven in 20 years. Locally, Sacramento County's projected population of those 60 and over will more than double between 2010 and 2040, from 238,648 to 525,734, according to the state Department of Finance.
A group of lawmakers and senior advocates on Wednesday warned that the aging phenomenon threatens to strain the state's resources unless California begins planning for change.
"California is either going to get ready or it's going to get swamped," said Assemblywoman Patty Berg, D-Eureka. "It's really that simple."
Berg, who chairs the Assembly Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care, released the third and final portion of a report assessing the state's policy needs. "Building an Aging Agenda for the 21st Century" is a 96-point report that takes a broad look at legislative changes it says the state should begin to address as the first of the baby boomers turn 60 this year.
Berg and supporters say they hope the report will be used by lawmakers in addressing everything from Medi-Cal spending to affordable senior housing.
Among the policy priorities in the report are Medi-Cal funding of telemedicine, where doctors can get reimbursed for consulting patients by teleconference; driver screening programs; building codes that reflect the needs of the elderly; and stiffer penalties for crooks who prey on seniors.
Berg said there should be more flexibility in the Family Leave Act, "whether it's a middle-aged adult caring for an elderly parent or a grandmother raising her grandchildren."
Forecasters say the cost of providing long-term care is increasing.
State expenditures on Medi-Cal -- the state's publicly funded health care program for children and adults with limited resources -- is expected to increase by 48 percent between 2010 and 2015 to $55.5 billion, with the elderly expected to have the highest rate of growth in terms of benefit expenditures, according to the Public Policy Institute of California.
The assemblywoman, however, viewed the population shift as an economic opportunity.
"Greater demand for caregiving means more jobs, more training forces, more opportunity. Greater demand for housing means greater inspiration for innovation," Berg said.
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