May is “Older Americans Month”

Older Americans Month is a program of the U.S. Department of Human Services Administration on Aging. When May was established Older Americans Month in 1963, only 17 million living Americans had reached their 65th birthdays. About a third of older Americans lived in poverty and there were few programs to meet their needs. Interest in older Americans and their concerns was growing, however. In April of 1963, President John F. Kennedy's meeting with the National Council of Senior Citizens served as a prelude to designating May as "Senior Citizens Month."

Thanks to President Jimmy Carter's 1980 designation, what was once called Senior Citizens Month, is now called "Older Americans Month," and has become a tradition.

Historically, Older Americans Month has been a time to acknowledge the contributions of past and current older persons to our country, in particular those who defended our country. Every President since JFK has issued a formal proclamation during or before the month of May asking that the entire nation pay tribute in some way to older persons in their communities. Older Americans Month is celebrated across the country through ceremonies, events, fairs and other such activities.

Here are some interesting facts about Older Americans:

  • There were 36.8 million people 65 and older in the United States on July 1, 2005. This age group accounted for 12 percent of the total population. Between 2004 and 2005, this age group increased by 457,000 people.
  • The projected population of people 65 and older in 2050 is 86.7 million. People in this age group would comprise 21 percent of the total population at that time.
  • 5.3 million people 65 and older who were in the labor force in 2005. Projections indicate that by 2014, the number will reach 8.7 million.
  • 79% citizens 65 and older registered to vote in the 2004 presidential election. Seventy-one percent of citizens in this age group reported actually casting a ballot.
  • Those who were born in the first year of the baby-boom generation will reach age 65 in 2011. Starting in 2011 and continuing through 2025, annual percentage increases in the age 65 and older population will outstrip increases in the general population by three to four times. In contrast, in the first 15 months after Census 2000, the older population grew at a slower rate than the general population.
  • The United States rates second among the nations of the world in number of people 80 and over. Only China has more. Although the U.S. contains less than 5% of the world’s population, it has 13% of its people age 80 and over.
  • The number of centenarians (those 100 or older) is growing in U.S. The 2006 Census Bureau estimated that there were over 79,682 individuals over the age of 100. By 2040, this number is projected to number 580,605.
Parts of this article were excerpted from the websites www.aoa.gov, of the Administration on Aging, and from www.census.gov, of the U.S. Census Bureau.

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