Future Directions for Public Senior Services: Meeting Diverging Needs

In metropolitan areas, the needs of middle-aged boomers are already split along class lines. This will likely persist into their older years. The first wave of baby boomers will become eligible for services funded by the federal Administration on Aging in zoo6. To date, there has been relatively little discussion of what this group's distinctive needs for (and interest in) public senior services might be. One perspective might be that boomers (particularly the well-educated boomers who once vowed to "never trust anyone over thirty") will be as wary of doors marked "Senior Center" as their parents and grandparents have been of those marked "Mental Health," and thus will avoid public services entirely. Another possibility would be that a substantial portion of this group will be caregiving for older relatives and will want assistance from the local aging agency as children of the "real" elderly. Another segment of boomers is known to be heading toward old age with poor health, low education, and insecure jobs and could use retraining or direct social welfare assistance. Of course, there is also the likelihood that relatively healthy early retirees will be eager to "give back" to the community and will be seeking meaningful volunteer opportunities. As they enter their 6os, a substantial number of baby boomers will have at least one parent alive, and it is increasingly likely that the parent will be receiving community-based long-term care rather than being ensconced in a nursing home (National Aging Information Center, 1996). At the same time, the raising of the age of Social Security eligibility may well mean a larger proportion of older boomers will be working well into their 6os and will not themselves be candidates for day trips or congregate meals. Already, the trend toward early retirement for men is slowing, and for women retirement age is rising (Manchester, I997; National Aging Information Center, I996). By examining data on current health conditions of the middle-aged and their demographic makeup, as well as existing patterns of aging services, we can arrive at some projections of the likely future direction of public senior services. CURRENT SERVICE PATTERNS Public senior services are facing reduced funding, shifting demographics, and the "aging in place" of their existing clientele. As the first wave of baby boomers passes 50, some of these agencies are reexamining their planned programming. The need for this reconsideration is particularly apparent in older cities and their suburbs. In the Baltimore, Maryland, region, for instance, current patterns of use of public aging services seem a poor template for future demand. Who is using these services now, and what services are being provided? How does the core city's pattern differ from the inner ring suburbs and those farther out? In Baltimore's case, the city and the (surrounding but entirely separate) county have approximately I5 percent (city) to 18 percent (county) of their population over 6o. However, as the overall city population has dropped, Baltimore County now has the largest number of older citizens of any jurisdiction in the state (I37,965 compared with the city's 119,I63). The four outer ring counties that encircle Baltimore County have been growing rapidly in population but only 2.5 to 8 percent of their citizens are over 6o. The over-6o populations of these four counties combined amount to approximately I3I,ooo. The distribution of elders within the over-6o group varies sharply among these jurisdictions, as well. For instance, those over 75 are a much larger proportion (5-6 percent) of the total population in the city and county than in the outer suburbs (2-3 percent) (Maryland Office on Aging, I997). Current service patterns reflect the idiosyncracies of a state-guided but locally run system. The city has fourteen senior centers, five of them city-run. The others are nonprofit entities with city grant support. …