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Current Population Reports Special Studies P23-190 in the United States Frank B. Hobbs with Bonnie L. Damon U.S. Department of Commerce U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Economics and Statistics Administration National Institutes of Health BUREAU OF THE CENSUS NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING Acknowledgments This report was prepared by Frank B. Hobbs, Chief, Age and Sex Statistics Branch, with the assistance of Bonnie L. Damon, Age and Sex Statistics Branch, under the general direction of Nampeo R. McKenney, Assistant Division Chief for Special Population Statistics, Population Division. Arthur J. Norton, Chief, Population Division, provided overall direction. Principal statistical assistance was provided by Bonnie L. Damon. Additional statistical assistance was provided by Linda M. Chase, Deborah L. Carroll, Valerie A. Lawson, Stephanie M. Marshall, and Leigh Zarbough, computer programming assistance was provided by Rachel J. Hall. Thanks are extended to Cynthia M. Taeuber, Director, Customer Liaison Office, and to Kevin G. Kinsella, Chief, Aging Studies Branch, International Programs Center, for their review and valuable comments to the entire report. Major contributions to the updating of Chapter 4, Economic Charac- teristics, was made by staff members under the general direction of Charles T. Nelson, Assistant Division Chief, Housing and Household Economic Statistics Division. We are grateful to many other staff members of the Population Division, the Housing and Household Economic Statistics Division, and other Census Bureau personnel who contributed to various phases of the production of this report. Sampling review was conducted by Andrew Zbikowski and Michael J. Roebuck of the Demographic Statistical Methods Division and Felipe Kohn of Decennial Statistical Studies Division. The staff of the Administrative Customer Services Division, Walter C. Odom, Chief, performed publication planning, design, composition, editorial review, and printing planning and procurement. Christine O. Langley provided publication coordination and editing, and graphic services were provided by Janet S. Sweeney of the Graphics Design and Composition Section. Funding for this report was provided by the United States National Institute on Aging’s Office of Demography of Aging, Richard M. Suzman, Director. This report is updated and revised from an earlier version written by Cynthia M. Taeuber with the assistance of Bonnie L. Damon and published in May 1993. This revision updates nearly all the data throughout the report, expands the use of 1990 decennial census data, incorporates updated national and State projections, and incorporates new survey data and analytical findings from Federal agencies and numerous researchers in the field of aging studies. Current Population Reports Special Studies P23-190 in the United States Frank B. Hobbs with Bonnie L. Damon Issued April 1996 U.S. Department of Commerce Ronald H. Brown, Secretary Economics and Statistics Administration Everett M. Ehrlich, Under Secretary for Economic Affairs BUREAU OF THE CENSUS Martha Farnsworth Riche, Director ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS ADMINISTRATION Economics and Statistics BUREAU OF THE CENSUS Administration Martha Farnsworth Riche, Director Everett M. Ehrlich, Under Secretary Bryant Benton, Deputy Director for Economic Affairs Paula J. Schneider, Principal Associate Director for Programs Nancy M. Gordon, Associate Director for Demographic Programs POPULATION DIVISION Arthur J. Norton, Chief SUGGESTED CITATION U.S. Bureau of the Census. Current Population Reports, Special Studies, P23-190, 65+ in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 1996. For sale by Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. Contents iii Highlights . v Chapter 1. Introduction . 1-1 Chapter 2. Numerical Growth . 2-1 Changes in Age Composition . 2-1 Older Women and Older Men. 2-10 Race and Hispanic Origin of the Elderly. 2-12 Familial Support Ratios . 2-19 Societal Support Ratios . 2-22 Our Aging World . 2-24 Chapter 3. Longevity and Health Characteristics . 3-1 Longevity and Causes of Death. 3-1 Trends in Life Expectancy and Survival . 3-1 Survival of the Young . 3-2 Survival of the Elderly . 3-2 Survival of the Oldest Old . 3-3 World’s Highest Life Expectancy . 3-4 Number of Deaths and Death Rates . 3-4 Causes of Death . 3-9 Implications . 3-13 Health and Disability Status . 3-14 Habits . 3-15 Chronic Illness . 3-17 Functional Limitations . 3-18 Health Insurance Coverage . 3-22 Implications of Health Status for Long-Term Care . 3-22 Health-Care Expenditures . 3-23 Chapter 4. Economic Characteristics . 4-1 Work and Retirement . 4-1 Labor Force Participation Trends . ..