9-27-2019 Handout Elder Boom Worker Shortage

Home

fewer immigrants, who are disproportionately represented in many occupations serving the elderly, statistics show. "We have added an entire generation since we first put the safety net in place but with no plan whatsoever for how to support them," said Ai jen Poo, co- director of Caring Across Generations, which, advocates for long-term care. "As the oldest state, Maine is the tip of the spear _ but it foreshadows what is to come for the entire country." Last year, Maine crossed a crucial aging milestone: A fifth of its population is older than 65, which meets the definition of "super -aged," according to the World Bank. By 2026, Maine will be joined by more than 15 other states, according to Fitch Ratings, including Vermont and New Hampshire, Maine's neighbors in the Northeast; Montana; Delaware; West Virginia; Wisconsin; and Pennsylvania. More than a dozen more will meet that criterion by 2030. Across the country, the number of seniors will grow by more than 40 million, approximately doubling between 2015 and 2050, while the population older than 85 will come close to tripling. Experts say the nation will have to refashion its workforce, overhaul its old -age programs and learn how to care for tens of millions of elderly people without ruining their families' financial lives. The results of not doing so fast enough are already visible in Maine. At the Hibbard Nursing Hoene in a rural slice of the state, Beth Lagasse cried softly as her father recovered down the hallway in Room 113.