Aging Gains and Losses Essay

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Aging Process: Gains and Losses

The adult senior population in the United States is growing at an unprecedented rate. In fact, the general population in the country is aging and both public and private elderly care providers need to make adjustments in order to be able to serve this growing population. Furthermore, many government and private industries are affected by this growing population, due to their prevalence in virtually all markets, as they purchase a wider variety of goods and services than ever before. But before the government or private companies can implement concrete policy changes, they first need to understand what the needs of this aging population will be. To determine that, it is important to understand both the gains and losses associated with aging.

Aging Gains

There are numerous advantages to aging for both the aging person and society as a whole. These benefits take many forms and often the advantages for individual and society intersect and benefit all. Such is the case with the criminal factor. Elderly people commit less crime and, subsequently and perhaps counter-intuitively, are the victims of crime less often than younger people. This could be because, as a general age group that engages in lower rates of criminal activity, seniors are exposed to fewer situations in which crime is actively occurring. Generally speaking, people have less to fear from crime as they age.

This gain is minor when compared to the most extensive benefit extended to the elderly, that of retirement and retirement benefits. Most older people have retired from daily work and are thus free to pursue hobbies and interests that they have had little time for in the past. Some pursue things they have always had a passion for, while others look to new outlets for their time and energy. This affords them a great deal of enjoyment and can provide an active life for them. They are able to afford such things because of the benefit of Social Security and other retirement plans, which are only available to people of advanced age. This is a genuine benefit that only older people get: they are provided with a continuous source of income without the stress of a job. While it can be argued that the benefits provided for retirement are not extravagant and that in the future the plans may not be solvent, there currently are still sufficient funds for millions of seniors to live quite comfortably.

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Along with Social Security and pensions, seniors are the only people in the United States with a national health care plan. The main part of Medicare, part A, is free to all over the age of 65 and the part B supplement that covers doctor's visits can be bought for a very low monthly fee. Though this plan does not cover everything, it is a health plan and has been in place for several decades now. People nearing retirement have come to rely on this program and look forward to not having to pay for their health insurance, which of course frees up more of the income they are receiving from Social Security and their other pension plans.

Another key gain most aged people have realized is the ability to be free from child-rearing responsibilities. For most of them their children have grown and moved out of their house and gone on to raise families of their own. This relieves older people from the both the financial and emotional burden of having to raise their children, both of which sap time, money, and energy from people. In addition to this, there is the added benefit that, in many cases, children are now looking after their aging parents and providing care that they once received. This security net for older people is another net gain as they age.

Aging Losses

The most obvious loss experienced when growing older is the physical deterioration of the body, causing pain, illness, arthritis, and….....

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