Tag Archives for Ken Dychtwald

National survey says care for older adults needs urgent rethinking 

Published in RINewsToday on January 27, 2025

With President Trump’s administration beginning and a new Congress poised to rethink, among other issues, Social Security, Medicare and federal aging programs and services, it might be prudent for the president and lawmakers to take a quick glance at the findings of a recently released national survey, “Meeting the Growing Demand for Age-Friendly Care: Health Care at the Crossroads.”

This 52-page national report, was released on Sept. 17, 2024 by Emeryville, California-based Age Wave, a think tank that studies the social, financial, healthcare, and business impacts of aging and The John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF), a New York based-foundation dedicated to improving care of older adults. The survey was conducted by The Harris Poll, a marking and analytic company tracking public opinion in existence for over sixty years ago.  

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, America’s population of adults over 65 is expected to skyrocket, from 56.1 million in 2020 to 82.1 million by 2050. The enormous  increase in the number of older adults is forcing states, Congress, and the private sector to rethink their approaches to health care, social services, housing and more, to help older adults live well as they age.

As millions of Baby Boomers (born 1946 to 1964) age, living longer than previous generations and seeking ways to maintain wellness and independence to age in place, this nationwide survey shows deep dissatisfaction among older Americans aged 65 and over with health care and services they receive that do not meet their specific needs and preferences. 

Finding Policy Solutions to Maximize “Golden Years”

The national survey reported that four in five older adults (82%) say the U.S. health care system is not prepared for the growing and changing needs of America’s aging population. Just one in 10 (11%) give the health care system an ‘A’ grade. Instead of the status quo, older adults say they want solutions that will maximize their golden years, like interventions that make care more affordable, innovations to reduce or prevent cognitive decline and health care providers who understand what matters most to them when assessing care options.

“Older adults are stuck in a health care system that is not responsive to their goals and preferences. Boomers want health care that maximizes their health and ability to function, and they want their providers to listen to them,” said Terry Fulmer, JAHF’s president, in a Sept. 17 statement announcing the release of the report. “It is not too late to pivot to age-friendly care, which prioritizes the needs and desires of older adults in their care plan. There are many innovative approaches to help older adults live every year to its fullest, not just increase the number of years they live,” she says.

International longevity and aging expert, Ken Dychtwald, founder and CEO of Age Wave, added: “The United States is on the brink of an age wave of unprecedented proportions, and American health care requires a radical and immediate rethink to match our health spans, or being able to live every year to its fullest, to our lifespans.”

Dychtward urged policy and business leaders to prepare for older adults making up a large and growing percentage of the U.S. population. “Everyone knows this day has been coming, but our survey shows that older adults do not like the choices or care currently offered to them. And the fact that although we spend more per capita on health care than any country in the world yet have worse lifespans and health spans is cause for alarm,” he said.

The age 65 and over survey respondents called for America’s health care system to offer “age-friendly care.” Most older adults (94%) say it is more important to maintain quality of life than it is to live as long as possible.

Only three in five older adults with a health care provider (58%) report that their providers currently ask about what matters to them. Though older adults fear Alzheimer’s and dementia more than any other health condition, for example, less than half (40%) say their health care providers routinely evaluate their cognitive health and brain functioning. Similarly, less than half of older adults (45%) say their health care providers evaluate their mental health, and although the ability to walk freely without pain is top of mind for older adults, just 55% say their medical care providers evaluate their mobility and physical fitness. 

The national survey findings indicated that the older respondents say that there are not enough qualified care providers. Nearly all older adults (94%) say that health care providers should be trained on the unique health issues of people 65 or older, but only 10% of medical schools require a rotation in geriatric care, compared to 96% that require a rotation in pediatric care. 

Between 2000 and 2022, the U.S. population of adults aged 65 and older rose 60%, but the number of geriatricians dropped by a whopping 28%. says the report. 

Not surprisingly, the survey findings indicate that health care costs are viewed as “unaffordable” and of a bigger concern to older adults than living expenses, inflation, tax increases and an economic downturn or recession. For instance, just 16% give an ‘A’ grade to satisfaction with their out-of-pocket costs. Older adults are especially concerned with the cost of long-term care, stressing that one of their greatest concerns is not being able to afford future health and long-term care needs (68%), and that the government should prioritize having Medicare cover long-term care (80%).

Differing Views of the Quality of Nursing Home Care

An estimated 36 million Americans have a family member or friend living in a nursing home or memory care facility today, according to the survey. Just 37% of those adults ages 18+ say their family member or friend living in a nursing home or memory care facility receives high-quality care. Only half (50%) say these facilities are the safest place for them.

There must be more coordination between primary care providers and other health care providers. While 52% of Medicare beneficiaries see more than three physicians per year, half of older adults from the survey say their primary care provider does not coordinate their treatment with their other health care providers. The report notes that this may be attributed to the increasing shortage of primary care providers, which makes it less likely for people to have a usual source of primary care or long-term relationship with a primary care provider.

As noted in Primary Care in Rhode Island, in 2024, from 200,000 to 400,000 Rhode Islanders lack access to a primary care provider, resulting in a shortage of 133 to 266 primary care physicians to treat them.

Finally, more than half of older adults (56%) say it is challenging and very stressful to navigate the current health care system, while nearly two in three (62%) say health insurance plans provide too many confusing choices. Research has shown that more than half (55%) mistakenly believe Medicare will cover a long-term stay in a nursing home, the report added.

As the new Congress begins its debate on aging policy, regardless of political party, the national survey reports that their older constituents want public policies enacted that support quality care.  The survey findings indicate that adding long-term care to what Medicare covers is supported by most Republicans (76%), Democrats (84%) and independents or people with other political affiliations (79%). Additionally, there is bipartisan support for improving quality at U.S. nursing homes also earns bipartisan support (Republicans 62% support, Democrats 68% support, independents or people with other political affiliations 65% support). 

“Better federal and state policies can encourage the development of age-friendly health systems, that focus on improving patients’ well-being and quality of life,” predicts JAHF’s Fulmer. “Policies could include new options for affording long-term care insurance and developing a federal strategy to ensure disadvantaged populations are prioritized in a national strategy for age-friendly care,” she says.

Report Offers 5 Key Suggestions to Improve Care to older Americans 

After reviewing all survey findings, JAHF identified five key recommendations to improve health care provided to older adults and to promote healthier, happier aging.

JAHF calls for promoting age-friendly care that can assist the nation’s older adults maintain their health, ability to function, thus maintaining their independence in the community. Pursuing scientific breakthroughs could bring the end to diseases like Alzheimer’s adds JAHF, calling for social isolation must be addressed. 

Assist family caregivers with skill-building tools, policies that allow flexibility in taking paid leave and ensuring care providers coordinate among multiple providers the health care system easier to navigate. 

Finally, JAHF calls for the creation of a ‘national master plan for aging’ that will be focused on meeting the needs of older adults. This plan would identify and address barriers that contribute to inequities, also creating a strategic plan that would provide a roadmap to reform the financing of long-term care, enhance the quality of nursing home care and to create systems to assist people to age in place at home rather than being admitted to acute and congregate settings. 

“We are at a unique crossroads. However, changing America’s health care system to meet older adults’ expectations is possible, practical and could lead to greater health at a far lower cost—and can benefit the government, private enterprise and consumers,” said Dychtwald. “Older adults deserve health care partners who understand what they are going through, have the skills to most effectively support their patients and act on what their customers want,” he says.

The Nuts and Bolts Behind the Study 

The study was conducted by Age Wave on behalf of The John A. Hartford Foundation and in partnership with The Harris Poll. After thorough review of secondary research and through qualitative research with older adults through online focus groups, a  nationally representative online survey was conducted from April 17 to May 9, 2024. Of 5,023 adult (age 18+) respondents, 2,516 were age 65 and older. Data were weighted where necessary to align them with their actual proportions in the population, including by age, gender, race/ethnicity, region, education, household income, size of household, marital status, and political party affiliation. 

Note:  The full report, Meeting the Growing . for Age-Friendly Care: Health Care at the Crossroads, can be found at https://www.johnahartford.org/images/uploads/resources/The_Growing_Demand_for_Age-Friendly_Care_Report_FINAL.pdf.

To watch the “Webinar: What Older Adults Want: Emerging Breakthroughs & Opportunities for Age-Friendly Care, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK6D4-G3KPw.

Age Wave study sees shift in how nation perceives aging

Published in RINewsToday on September 11, 2023

“Old Age” enters a new age.  That’s how Age Wave sees it after releasing its new Harris Poll results, revealing that the graying of America is shifting how the nation views growing old and its perception on longevity, health, retirement and sense of purpose.  

“Everywhere we turn in American culture today, we see signs that we’ve entered a new age of aging. Bruce Springsteen is selling out concerts at the age of 73; Martha Stewart is a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model at 81; Warren Buffet continues to dispense financial wisdom at 92. “Old age isn’t what it used to be” has become a familiar refrain,” says Age Wave’s statement released in April 2023, announcing the study’s results. 

“This is the first study of its kind. There have been many studies about aging and longevity. We at Age Wave have conducted dozens of them in the United States and all over the world, but never one quite like this. For The New Age of Aging study, we cooked up a series of questions we thought would yield very unusual and provocative answers, and we were not disappointed,” says Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D., CEO of Age Wave, a California-based think tank focusing on the lifestyle, marketing, healthcare, economic, leisure, workforce, and political implications of the age wave.  He is also the author of 19 books including his new memoir Radical Curiosity: My Ride on the Age Wave.

A new aging normal

The Age Wave study, The New Age of Aging, found that 79% of adults aged 50 and over think today’s older adults are far more active, and 58% say they are more open-minded and curious compared with the previous generation.

The study’s findings reveal that the nation’s definition of what’s considered to be “old” is also dramatically changing. While age 60 was considered “old” in their grandparents’ day, now age 80 is the median age considered to be “old” today, the report’s authors researchers say, noting that with these changes, vocabulary is starting to shift, too.  “Sixty-nine percent of U.S adults aged 50 and over find the term “longevity” more appealing to use than the term “aging. the survey found.  

Eighty three percent of the respondents say it’s more important for them to feel “useful” and have a continued sense of purpose than striving for being “youthful” in their retirement years. 

Life lessons are the most importance legacy we can leave before our passing, say the study report’s authors. “The study shows that 65% of adults 50+ think that values and life lessons are the most important thing to pass onto their heirs and loved ones. Only 22% said financial assets and/or real estate were the most important. 

According to the report’s authors, with longevity, “anxiety plummets while happiness soars.” The study’s findings indicate that today’s older adults feel happier, freer, and less anxiety-ridden than younger generations. And they aren’t looking back, reflecting on the good old times.  Seventy one percent say the best time of their lives is right now or in front of them, the findings indicate.

Today’s definition of “retirement” is also changing with the nation’s shift in the perception of growing old and the long-held cultural beliefs and social norms as how they are supposed to look and act. The study found that 97% of adults over age 65 agreed that it’s important to stay curious and be willing to learn new things throughout life’s later years. Similarly, 66% of Americans aged 50 and over see retirement as a new chapter in life, while only 16% say it’s principally a time for rest and relaxation. 

Retirement is not just sitting on a rocking chair or taking trips. With increasing longevity and the nation’s changing views of retirement, 59% of pre-retirees and retirees say they want to work in some form in retirement, say the researchers, noting that employee benefits like flex-work, remote-work, sabbaticals, and paid leave can help retain these older workers. 

 Reflections on Age Wave’s new study

“Aging has finally come of age,” said Dychtwald. Workplaces, homes, medical systems, transportation, shopping centers, lifelong education, digital technology, and social media must all adapt to meet the demographic realities of this new age of aging,” he says.

Dychtwald sees a changing media’s marketing message is reflecting the nation’s changing perception of growing older.

In the 1990s, a client, Lou Gerstner, CEO of American Express, asked to see “all of the great 50+ oriented TV ads” being shown at that time. “Amazingly, on all of television, there were only four ads that featured anyone over 50. There was Mr. Whipple, who squeezed toilet paper in the supermarket. There was a gal named Clara Peller who was in a Wendy’s ad yelling, “Where’s the beef?” There was Mrs. Olson from Folgers Coffee. And then there’s our friend Wilford Brimley, who became the spokesperson for Quaker Oats,” remarked Dychtwald.  

“Look at ads today and we see not only diversity, equity, and inclusion in terms of people’s racial and ethnic backgrounds, but also in terms of age and generations. We see multigenerational families. We see older people and younger people together. There’s no question that we’re entering what we set out to study—a new age of aging,” he says.

Dychtwald observes that a few powerful global forces are converging to create a new age of aging.  “We had a bit of a backslide during COVID, but we are still living far longer than humans have ever lived before. “Throughout 99 % human history, the average life expectancy was under 18 years. At the start of the 20th Century, life expectancy in the U.S. was 47 years. Today it’s around 77, says the Age Wave Study.  

However, the study also notes that for decades while lifespans have been extended, a person’s health span (i.e., the years of dependable good health) have not kept up, remaining at an age of 66 years. Americans will spend a median of 12 years living with a disability or serious disease. Looking globally, the U.S. ranks #1 in healthcare expenditures per capita but only #68 in healthy life expectancy.

Dychtwald calls for an integrated health care system. “If you’re the 60, or 70, or 80, or 90-year-old wandering through the health care system, it’s confusing. It’s like a bowl of spaghetti. You might have three doctors who don’t talk to each other, and you might have lots of different medications. And nobody’s ever really studied if you should be taking all those medications at the same time, what’s called polypharmacy.

Further, it can be difficult knowing how to access a particular health care system, particularly if you’re of lower income or perhaps English is your second language. Or you may live in a rural community where health care is not easily accessible. That’s simply not fair. We ought to be able to create healthy longevity for everyone, he says.

The second global force that’s helping to create this new age of aging is declining fertility, notes Dychtwald. “There’s not one country in Europe that’s having enough kids to replace themselves. We’re near replacement level in the U.S., which is 2.1 kids per family. But that’s not enough for young people to balance out older people in our population,” he adds.

“Over the next 30 years, our 65 and over population is going to grow by 53%. The third global force that comes into play is younger generations replacing our new older population. “It’s not our grandmas or grandpas who are becoming the older people of today and tomorrow. It’s the Baby Boomers and Gen Xers who have a big appetite for trying new things, and who think of this as a “third age” of life. It’s not necessarily a time to wind down, but maybe a time to try new things, to go back to school, to fall in love again. It’s a time to volunteer or get involved with your church or mosque or synagogue, or maybe to make new friends and maybe even make new friends across generations,” he says.

Capability Vs. Age in choosing political leaders

While Age Wave’s study didn’t gauge the older respondents views as to how they felt about older political leaders, Dychtwald has his personal views.  Political leaders should be chosen because of their capacity to make decisions as well as their intelligence and decency as human beings., he says. “They may be 30, they may be 50, they may be 80. We’ve somehow turned a lot of our political races into a WrestleMania competition, where we make fun of people if they’re too short or if they move too slowly—if, they have extra body weight or they’re at a certain age,” he says.

“I think what’s more important is capability than age. But it is true that older people are more and more present in the political arena and running for or holding very high-level offices. And there’s some worry about that,” he says, asking these questions: “What happens if they stumble and fall? What happens if they have cognitive impairment? What happens if they don’t make the right decision?”

On behalf of Age Wave, the Harris Poll conducted an online, nationally representative survey among 2,054 U.S. adults ages 18+, including 934 adults ages 50+ from June 6-8, 2023. Results were weighted to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population.

For a copy of Age Wave’s study report, The New Age of Aging, go to https://agewave.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/08-07-23-Age-Wave-The-New-Age-of-Aging-Report_FINAL.pdf.

To know more about Age Wave’s reports, studies, and polls and Ken Dychtwald’s new book Radical Curiosity: My Life on the Age Wave, go to: https://.AgeWave.com