The Administration for Community Living has released its Minority Aging Statistical Profile, an annual summary of the most recent statistics on older adults within the African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian American, and Hispanic American populations. The summary includes topical areas such as centenarians, residence, education, marital status, living arrangements, income and poverty, self-rated health status, chronic conditions, disability status, health insurance, and participation in Older Americans Act (OAA) programs. Data for these profiles are compiled based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Each year, these profiles show that the older adult population in the United States is continuing to become more racially and ethnically diverse as the overall minority population in the U.S. experiences greater longevity. Racial and Ethnic minority populations have increased from 6.9 million in 2006 (19% of all older adults) to 11.1 million in 2016 (23% of all older adults). It is projected that racial and ethnic minority populations will increase to 21.1 million in 2030 (28% of projected older adults).
The full Minority Aging Statistical Profile is available here. Some highlights of the report are below.
Total Aging Population:
- 49.2 million Americans 65+ in 2016, 126 women for every 100 men
- 6.4 million Americans 85+ in 2016, 187 women for every 100 men
- 94.7 million Americans 65+ in 2060
- 19 million Americans 85+ in 2060
Aging Population by Race/Ethnicity
- African-Americans: 9% of older adult population
- Asian-Americans: 4% of older adult population
- Hispanics: 8% of older adult population
- Native American: .5% of older adult population
Geographic Location
- Over 50% of older African-Americans lived in the following states: New York, Florida, Georgia, Texas, California, North Carolina, Illinois, Maryland
- 60% of older Asian-Americans lived in California, New York, Hawaii, Texas
- Almost 50% of older Native Americans lived in the following states: Oklahoma, Arizona, California, New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas
- 60% of older Hispanics lived in California, Texas, and Florida
Income and Poverty
- Overall, 9.3% of older adults experience poverty.
- 18.7% of African-American older adults experience poverty.
- 11.8% of Asian-American older adults experience poverty.
- 18.8% of Native American older adults experience poverty.
- 17.4% of Hispanic older adults experience poverty.
Health Status
- 80% of white men and 81% white women rate themselves to be in good to excellent health, compared to 67% of African-American men, 64% of African-American women, 69% of Hispanic men, and 65% of Hispanic women.
- African-American and Hispanic older adults were disproportionately like to experience hypertension and diabetes
Older Americans Act
- 13% of Title III OAA Home and Community Based Registered Services were provided to African Americans
- 4% of Title III OAA Home and Community Based Registered Services were provided to Asian Americans
- 1.2% of Title III OAA Home and Community Based Registered Services were provided to Native Americans
- 9% of Title III OAA Home and Community Based Registered Services were provided to Hispanic Americans