midterm questions Flashcards
What is the importance of mortality and fertility for the elderly population? How does each, past and present, play a role in the size and percentage of the elderly population? What are the trends with each?
Fertility
- past fertility 65+ years ago determines the size/# of the older population
- currently fertility determines the % of the older population today
Mortality
- takes individuals out of the population
What are the general trends (no need to memorize numbers) in the older population relative education, gender, living arrangements, marital status, income, health status, etc. What is the importance and implications of these trends?
Gender– predominantly female (65+ its 100 m to 123 f, 85+ 100 m to 184 f)
Marital status – most older males are married (68%) while women are less likely to be married (47%), 29% of older women are widowed, and 16% of ppl are divorced/separated
Living arrangements – 28% of older persons live alone, women (33%) are more likely than men (22%) to live alone, 59% live with a spouse (men more likely 71% –> 48%)
homeownership – 79.1% own compared to renting at 20%
income – median income was $29,740 with men averaging $37,430 compared to females $24,630, for 27% of 65+ social security is 90% of their income, average social security is $23,028 a year (1,919/month)
poverty – 14.9% (8.6 million) live below or near the poverty line, 11.2% of women and 9.0% of men live in poverty
employment – 19.2% (11.2 million) are in labor force or actively seeking work, 24% of men, 16% of women , they comprise 6.7% of the labor force
education – education level of older population is increasing from 1970 where only 28% of those over 65 had graduated high school while 89% of people over 65 in 2022 graduated high school
health – most 65+ have at least one chronic disease –> high bp is 59%, arthritis is 48%, cancer is 26%
health behaviors– 30% obese, 8.3% smokers, 1/3 see 5+ doctors a year
health care costs – 94% had insurance through medicare, 46% also had private insurance, average out of pocket expenditures was $6,663/yr
disabilities– 33% have some type of disability and this increases with age
Why is the Baby Boom important for the future of aging?
What does aging of the aged mean?
older population is getting older
- fastest growing age segment –> oldest old
- expected to double from 6.5 million in 2022 to 13.7 million in 2040, 111% increase
What are the consequences and implications of the disproportionate female older population? Why does this matter?
What are the young-old, old-old and oldest old? What are some of the differences between the groups?
young-old: 65-74 –> maybe these people are still thinking about retirement planning
middle old: 75-84 –> increasing disabilities and health issues,
old-old: 85+ –> care directives, wills, end of life care.
different needs and concerns –> “illlderly” vs “wellderly”
Why has the field of elder law developed?
increasing population, arising issues
What are some of the major issues in terms of elder law? What do elder lawyers do – what issues do they grapple with? What are some of the special concerns or dilemmas that elder lawyers deal with that are not as prevalent with younger clients?
What are two main concerns of elder law that are not as pressing in other areas of the law?
What are some of the criteria to determine if a person is mentally competent? What type of evidence would exist or be desired for mental capacity? What is the standard for capacity? How is capacity determined in an attorney’s office? Who determines if a client has capacity in making legal documents?
What are some of the causes or disorders that can cause diminished capacity? Is capacity constant at all times?
alzheimers
Why is the mental capacity of an older person important from a legal perspective?
What is the dilemma in balancing freedom of choice versus protection from the inability to make choices? What takes precedence? How is this dilemma solved?
What is the typical approach in determining capacity What is the standard used?
What is Alzheimer’s disease? Why is it important to elder law? What are the characteristics of the disease? What is its diagnosis, treatment, etc.? How does Alzheimer’s disease impinge on a person’s ability to make legal documents?
a disease that begins 20 years or more before memory loss and other symptoms develop. it is a type of brain disease that is caused by damage to nerve cells also known as neurons that are important in all human activity both physical and psychological. damage is first seen in areas of the brain responsible for memory, language, and thinking.
-important to elder law when determining capacity
What are the legal dilemmas in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease and how can they be dealt with? What about in the advanced stages of the disease?
The story of Still Alice vividly portrays the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Using the story of Alice, discuss the legal dilemmas of Alice in making a will, an advance directive, buying a house, deciding medical treatment, etc. When was Alice capable of doing these and when was she not?
How does the story of Still Alice demonstrate the dilemmas of elder law? Provide specific examples.
How is the question of who is the client often raised when dealing with an older person when a friend/family accompanies them to their legal appointment? Why would this even be a question? What are the criteria to resolve this dilemma?
Grandma wants to give her money to the TV evangelist. Is this enough to determine Grandma is incapacitated? Why or why not?
What are some of the criteria in determining whether a person has capacity to make legal decisions?
If an older person goes to an attorney to make a will and has difficulty answering questions, what are some considerations before assuming the person doesn’t have capacity?
Why is elder law so concerned and focused on capacity?
What is ageism? Give some examples. What is ageism based on
ageism can be seen as a systematic stereotyping of and discrimination against people because they are old
Is ageism new? Is ageism rare?
What are some factors that have increased ageism? What causes ageism?
How does ageism not correctly reflect the reality of older people?
You are a 75 year old, in what ways do you experience ageism in your life?
What are the effects of ageist behaviors? On older people? On society? The assumption is that ageism only has negative effects but are there any positive effects?
Why do we condone and overlook ageism?
What are some of the factors that had increased the size of the older population today compared to 1900?
the baby boom was between 1946 and 1964 due to good post war economy, men back from WWII, younger AND older women having babies, and the ideal for larger families
- these babies would now be ages 60 to 78
-76 million
by 2030 all baby boomers will be 65+
What does the size of the older population or trends of demographic characteristics have on policy implications or wider consequences? Give examples.
What specifically are the gender trends of the older population and what are the policy and personal implications of these trends?
older population is predominantly female
- 65+ sex ratio – 100m/123f
- 85 + sex ratio – 100m/184f
Describe the medical test to determine capacity? (Trick question)
Capacity often fluctuates. As an attorney what are some of the precautions you might take relative an older person signing legal documents?
Discuss the balance of an older person’s independence and autonomy with the goal of protecting that person from harm or risk?
What does an attorney do to assess a person’s capacity before allowing them to make legal decisions?
What are the 3 major demographic trends in terms of the elderly population? What is happening in terms of each?
What is occurring in terms of population trends of the 85+ population? Why is the growth among this group especially important in terms of public policy and services?
How do we assess mental capacity? What does this mean?
Explain what the “pig in the python” means and its relevance to future aging policy.
baby boom
What is a population pyramid? Draw and describe the population pyramids for the US in 1900, mid-1900s, and 2020. What are some of the reasons for the changes in the pyramid shapes?
What is the trend in life expectancy over the last century? What are some of the reasons it has changed?
significant advances in life expectancy since 1900
- penicilin and more modern medicine –> flu shots too,
- war
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Describe the changing percent of the aging population over the last century. Why has it changed?
Describe the sex ratio among the older population. Why is it important? How does the sex ratio relate to policy issues or have other consequences?
increasing from 5% in 1920 to 17.3% in 2022 with an expected 22% in 2040
Why is demography important to aging policy?
Why are fertility rates important to aging policy?
- higher fertility rates, higher younger population, % of older population decreases and maybe policy may work to benefit younger ppl more
Describe the changes in life expectancy over the last century or so. What has caused these changes? Should we expect significant increases in life expectancy in the near future? What are the changes in the leading causes of death?
Explain how the statement – Almost two-thirds of Americans living with Alzheimer’s are women – is far more complex than it seems. Does this statement mean that women are more likely to get Alzheimer’s than men? What are some policy and personal consequences of this fact?
