West Braces for Elderly Population Boom
By ANGIE WAGNER - Associated Press Writer
PAHRUMP, Nev.

Published Saturday, November 13, 2004

The Census Bureau says the population of those 65 and older will
increase more rapidly in the West than in any other area of the
country. While retirees settle in, states are figuring out how to
keep up with an aging population. Will there be enough doctors and
nurses? Hospitals and nursing homes? Will housing be affordable?

"This affects all of us," said Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne. "It's
life, and it's time that we step up, recognize it, identify the
challenges and find solutions."

Retirees eager to escape cold winters or congested freeways have been
flocking to Western cities like Pahrump.

When Steve Marsh first drove into this dusty town outside Las Vegas,
he took one look at the gravel roads and sagebrush flats and grunted:
"This is in the middle of nowhere."

This small blue-collar town doesn't seem like much. But it boasts
miles of clean, open space and is surrounded by desert mountains. The
weather is mild, the housing cheap and national parks are nearby.

It was enough for Marsh and his wife, Donna, to move here to retire.

"We love it," Marsh said, relaxing after a round of golf at his
Desert Greens retirement community. "We're happy as pigs in slop."

---

You don't have to tell retirees in Pahrump that the West is THE place
to retire. They live in the third-fastest growing county in the
nation for those 65 and older. Only about 5,000 seniors call Nye
County home, but that is more than three times the number that lived
here in 1990, according to Census Bureau figures.

Nevada leads the country in the senior population boom. From 1990 to
2003, the state's 65 and older population almost doubled - from
129,107 to 250,787, according to census numbers. Alaska, Arizona, New
Mexico, Hawaii, Utah, Colorado, and Idaho were among the top 10
states for growth in the senior population.

Lured by the nostalgia of rural towns and outdoor recreation,
retirees have turned Western towns into retirement hot spots. Florida
and California have long been Meccas. But today, Bend, Ore., St.
George, Utah, Sheridan, Wyo., and Silver City, N.M., are hip places
to be.

Laura Ridley and her husband, a retired real estate developer, traded
Georgia for Cody, Wyo., four years ago. She speaks about the West in
postcard-perfect words.

"We can be in the park (Yellowstone) in an hour," she said. "The
animals, oh my goodness, to see them just like it's supposed to be.
The climate is just fantastic. When it snows, it's like
confectioner's sugar."

Retirees who migrate are the "healthiest, wealthiest and best-
educated of all retirees," said Mark Fagan, a sociologist at
Jacksonville State University in Alabama. They take college classes
and travel. Few pass time in rocking chairs on the front porch.

"Before, when you thought of a retirement home, you'd think of bingo
and all that," said Wynne Angell, a retirement housing consultant.
"Now ... you don't even want to advertise that. Bingo - that just
creates the impression of people that are real frail."

But as retirees age and join the baby boomers already in the West,
their housing and medical needs will change. They may need help with
everyday activities or move into an assisted living home.

Through 2025, the Census Bureau projects the West will continue to
dominate the country in the growth of the senior population. Utah
will lead, followed by Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, Oregon, Alaska and
Colorado. The senior population in those states is expected to at
least double. Arizona, New Mexico, Montana and Nevada also rank among
the 15 fastest-growing states.

All those extra people will strain state resources.

States are taking stock of their resources for older residents,
examining health care and housing options, forming committees to
study needs of an aging population and trying to plan for an
unprecedented population increase.

"We've known this was coming for a long, long time," said Bev Morrow,
administrator of the Wyoming Aging Division. "Very little has
actually been done."

---

Kempthorne felt so strongly about preparing for older residents that
he made long-term care his initiative as chairman of the National
Governors Association this past year. His father cared for his
mother, a stroke victim, in the couple's home until her death last
week.

That's a trend states are looking at - moving away from nursing homes
and using relatives or friends as caregivers. Home care is usually
cheaper and it's what people prefer, said Donna Folkemer, health
program director for the National Conference of State Legislatures.

But home care creates a whole new set of issues. How will it work?
How many caregivers will there be? And what about giving caregivers a
break? The availability and affordability of so-called respite care
is something else states are examining, especially rural states like
Montana and Wyoming.

The Wyoming Legislature this year created a long-term care
subcommittee that is studying such issues as whether to put
Alzheimer's units in assisted living facilities, the availability of
nursing assistants and the shortage of doctors.

"It's difficult to attract providers into all of the places we need
them," Morrow said.

More doctors are limiting Medicare patients because reimbursement
rates are lower than private insurance. That makes finding a
physician even harder in parts of the West where it can be 100 miles
or more between towns.

Nurses are also scarce. In 2000, 10 of 13 Western states had nursing
shortages, according to a 2002 U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services report. By 2020, the shortage is projected to spread to all
Western states and beyond.

"There's a tug and pull here," said Dr. Joanne Schwartzberg, director
of aging and community health for the American Medical Association.
"You have the age wave coming, and we just don't have work force."

When Robert Pioso, 69, retired as president of a Wisconsin first-aid
supply company two years ago, he and his wife were looking for a town
with affordable housing, a symphony orchestra and a favorable
climate.

They found that in Eugene, Ore., but that search was easy compared to
finding a doctor that accepted Medicare. That took a month.

It's not uncommon for older residents to be more interested in making
sure recreation areas are nearby than a hospital.

Pahrump, where Steve Marsh, who has Parkinson's disease, moved to
from Indiana, won't have a hospital until 2006. Marsh, 67, goes to a
Veterans Administration clinic in Pahrump or drives 60 miles to Las
Vegas for medical care.

"That's not what they think about," Schwartzberg said. "They think,
finally I'm ready to retire. I want to enjoy myself. I don't want to
think about problems that won't arise for 10, maybe 15 years.

"It's hard enough to get people to plan for retirement. How do you
get people to start thinking about health care?"

States, experts say, don't have a choice. They must prepare.

---

When retirees began discovering Sheridan, Wyo., population 16,000,
Mayor Jim Wilson asked them to help make Sheridan, with its main
street parades and small-town charm, more attractive to an older
population.

The newcomers now serve on volunteer boards and have helped the town
develop hiking and bicycle trails.

Sheridan is expanding its hospital, making sure its older buildings
are accessible to the handicapped, and working to keep housing
affordable in a town where new residents have driven up home prices.

That's a big problem in retirement spots. New, wealthier residents
can afford to pay more for homes, but that raises property taxes for
longtime residents.

The West accounted for 19 of the top 25 counties in the country for
the most expensive homes owned by people ages 55 to 74, according to
estimates from the National Association of Home Builders based on
census numbers.

Pitkin County, Colo., home to Aspen, led the country with an average
home price of $946,036. Teton County, Wyo., home to Jackson and a
gateway to Yellowstone National Park, was third with an average price
of $650,526.

Nevada is helping launch a pilot project to build an affordable,
assisted-living home in Las Vegas. The 90-unit facility is scheduled
to open next year. Homebuilder Del Webb, a leader in housing for 55
and older, now offers a range of prices for its Sun City communities
in Nevada, Arizona and California.

But preparing for an older population is more than just making sure
health care is adequate and housing is affordable. It's also about
quality of life and making sure jobs are available for the many
retirees who plan to continue working.

States will need to attract companies that want to hire older workers
and businesses will have to accommodate job-sharing and employees who
want to work from home, said Clare Hushbeck, an economist with AARP.

"It does require big vision," she said. "It's not an easy thing to
wrap your mind around, but it's coming."

In Arizona, the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust recently awarded
grants to four communities to create "life options" centers, where
older adults can learn about new careers, take classes, volunteer and
socialize.

Telemedicine - doctors practicing from afar by voice, data and video
hookup - may see greater use in remote communities in the West.
Kempthorne said a new hospital in Salmon, Idaho, will use
telemedicine extensively.

States will also need more transportation options. Using school buses
to transport seniors while students are in school is one idea,
Kempthorne said.

"While we are getting used to the current generation of retirees and
near-retirees, there will be a gap," said Daniel Perry, executive
director of the Alliance for Aging Research. "They will be moving to
more far-flung areas. There'll be a gap between now and when health
care and transportation services and entertainment catches up with
them."

The Idaho governor hopes his yearlong work on long-term care paid off
and that his fellow governors will include the issue in their state-
of-the-state addresses next year.

"You don't have to look very far down the road with regard to your
budgets," Kempthorne said. "You're going to be impacted one way or
another. You better get ahead of the curve."

---

EDITOR'S NOTE - Angie Wagner is the AP's Western regional writer,
based in Las Vegas. AP Writer Bob Anez in Helena, Mont., contributed
to this report.

---

Last modified: November 13. 2004 8:23PM

SOURCE: The Ledger, FL
http://tinyurl.com/6c677

* * *
Murray Charters <[log in to unmask]>
Please place this address in your address book
Please purge all others

Web site: Parkinsons Resources on the WWWeb
http://www.geocities.com/murraycharters

----------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask]
In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn