Demographic population change Essay Example for Free

Demographic population change Essay The population is constantly aging. The population will continue to increase over time because of elderly who have retired, have illnesses and disabilities. Some of the aging population will need long-term care, medical treatment, and in home care because of their medical conditions. Some of the aging population will also require medical care because many of them who are retired do not have health insurance from their jobs. Some elderly rely on Medicare or Medicaid to pay their medical expenses. There is also elderly who are living on a low or fixed income because they are receiving disability income. Therefore they cannot afford to pay for health insurance or prescriptions. Targeted population/demographics Due to the aging economy, the elderly is expected to increase. According to Weiner, M. J. Tilly, J. (2013) â€Å"Between 2000 and 2050, the number of older people is projected to increase by 135%. Moreover, the population aged 85 and over, which is the group most likely to need health and long-term care services, is projected to increase by 350%. Over this time period, the proportion of the population that is over the age of 65 will increase from 12. 7% in 2000 to 20. % in 2050; the proportion of the population that is age 85 and older will increase from 1. 6% in 2000 to 4. 8% in 2050. †(Para 2). The aging population will have a huge effect on health care because of the large amount of elderly who will need acute care. Also because there is a shortage of health care professionals such as nurses and other workers, many long- term care facilities are left with workers that do not have skills to perform their jobs correctly. Also the facilities are paying low rates making it hard to hire new employees and to keep old employees. According to Weiner, M. J. Tilly, J. (2013) â€Å"Unskilled paraprofessionals, who provide the bulk of long-term care services, are overwhelmingly women and disproportionately drawn from racial and ethnic minorities. Low wages and benefits, hard working conditions, heavy workloads and a job that has been stigmatized by society make worker recruitment and retention difficult. † (Para 6). Aging population effect on healthcare There are many elderly that will require treatment for illnesses such as heart disease, bone disorders and other health deficiencies. The ongoing care of patient’s is becoming very costly to health insurance companies as well as the patients. Because patient will need such a long time of managed care, Doctor will have to provide treatment for patients to learn how to manage their illness instead of providing cures. Most of the time when elderly patients have chronic illnesses, the illness can cause them to become disable causing them to require continued care in another facility, such as nursing homes, in home care, and adult day care, which can be longer care. Because the aging population will require long-term care health care cost will increase. The elderly patient that cannot afford to pay for their own medical expenses will have to rely on government funded programs, such as Medicaid. This will cause health care cost to rise because the government will have to pay for the long-term treatment. Also patients that rely on government programs to help pay for their medical expenses cannot afford to pay for their prescription drugs because medication is too expensive to treat chronic conditions. Therefore, they have government programs, such as prescription discount cards to help them pay for their prescriptions. Health care cost will also increase because when the aging population is faced with chronic conditions, there are healthcare organizations that offer wellness programs to help elderly patients get better. These wellness programs are not free. They take many different health insurance plans. Patients who cannot afford them can get help to pay for the program through government health insurance plans. However, because there are so many elderly patients that need well programs because they have chronic conditions, the government health insurance plans can take some time to acquire. Therefore, there are many of the aging population that do not have help and still is waiting on help from the government for health insurance. Although there are other health insurance companies that the elderly can qualify for, there are still requirements for them to become eligible. Some of the aging population is eligible for Medicare through disability. Even though people are covered through Medicare does not mean they do not need assistance. Medicare covers some medical expenses but does not cover dental, prescription drugs, or eyeglasses, leaving many of the aging population with large medical expenses. Sometimes it is difficult for older people to get insurance many of them go to the emergency room for care and many do not get care at all. Because of these types of situations, many older people have died or have medical bills that are so high they cannot afford to pay them. Marketing needs for the aging population. There needs to be more treatment centers built for the older generations. Also there should be marketing campaign for health insurance so that older people can know the type of health care that is available for them and prescription plans that are available. There are many of the aging population that does not know where to go or what to do to apply for health insurance. Therefore they should have campaigns that provide them with the resources they need to accommodate them. Addressing challenges. The communities with senior centers and hold health fairs and bring in different health professional to answer the questions and concerns the elderly has. The government can develop better health insurance program that can help the aging population with preventive, wellness and chronic condition treatments. The patients can make sure they are aware of the resources that are available for treatment. Also take patients can use preventive care programs so they can maintain their health. In Conclusion, there are many of the aging population that can be involved in managing their own health through organizations that offer preventive care for their conditions. It is only a matter of finding the right resources that will help them. Many of the older population do not have health care but there are many government programs that will allow them to get the help they need. Although the aging population will keep growing over time, the society can help them maintain their health so they can stop healthcare cost from growing at such an alarming rate.