Increased Worldwide Longevity To Alter Retirement

The advances in medicine allow us to live longer. And the new life extension therapies based on genetic engineering, stem cells, replacement organ implants and nanotechnologies will increase the life expectation of our generation far beyond anything possible in the past.

There are already many experts claiming that an individual born today might reach the venerable age of 1000. In our days increased longevity is achieved not only in developed countries such as the U.S., but also across the globe. This trend will drive tremendous changes in retirement, economy, workplace, social norms and more. Longevity brings opportunities but challenges as well.

Leading experts on global retirement, such as the executive director of the Global Coalition on Aging, Mike Hodin, offered some insight on the deep structural changes expected to lead to a retirement crisis.

People are living longer today and the scale of the transformation is huge. According to Mike Hodin, this can be considered as a mega trend larger than anything that exists today. The expert expects tremendous economic, sociological and historic changes that we, as a society never seen before. He compares the scale of this shift to the industrial revolution or the advent of the women’s movement. We can expect this historic sift to be profoundly disruptive on multiple plans.

According to Hodin, this change is already taking place and the trend is going on through the 21st century. This cannot be considered to be connected only to the baby boomer phenomenon but it is much larger in implications. With the advances in medicine and science, today hundred-year life spans are something very common. Such kind of worldwide longevity in general masses of population has been never experienced before in human history. In the past, there were certain individuals able to attain a respectable age, but this was the exceptions rather than the rule.

We are also seeing very low birth rates everywhere in the world, at the same time with a generalized increased longevity. This is a consequence of societies urbanizing and modernizing. This is happening even across emerging markets in Latin America, Asia and Africa. However, in the most developed countries, the trend is stronger. In Japan, for instance, it is estimated that by the year 2020, more than one-third of population will be over 60. At this high percent of elders, the social systems put in place in Japan after WWII, like health care, retirement and pension, will no longer work.

The U.S. experience a similar situation to Japan and other developed European countries. As a great beneficiary of longevity, the U.S. is on the top of the list when it comes to healthy aging. The current birthrate in the U.S., of about 2.1, is more than in countries like the U.K., Germany, the Netherlands, Italy, Canada, Australia or Japan, which are all under 1.5.

The U.S. is a healthier economic place that allows managing a bit easier this transition process. Even being in a better position, this does not make the United States immune to challenges. There is still a need to better prepare for this transformation. Since most of the modern institutions and public policies in place today were invented during the 20th century, they need to be adapted to the new challenges. For programs such as Medicare or Social Security the arithmetic already doesn’t work anymore.

Source: iTech Post

Latest Developments

We keep our members and partners in touch with the most recent updates and opinions in the worldwide dialogue on population longevity and related issues.

Best Practices for Engaging a Multigenerational Workforce

Employers are grappling with a myriad of workforce-related issues ranging from productivity to attracting and retaining talent, but many may be overlooking some seismic shifts that are reshaping the future of work: longevity, population aging, and the multigenerational workforce.

Brazil Must Fight Antibiotic Resistance

The threat posed by antimicrobial resistance is urgent and spares no country - including Brazil. According to The Lancet, 63 deaths per 100,000 are associated with AMR in Brazil and Paraguay, a rate that exceeds the average for Latin America and the Caribbean. AMR-associated deaths in Brazil are second only to cardiovascular diseases and cancers.

More Than Half of Americans are Unfamiliar with Chronic Kidney Disease, Survey Finds

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major blind spot for many Americans, a new survey suggests. The poll, conducted by the Global Coalition on Aging, asked 1,000 American adults about their understanding and perception of CKD. Though many respondents used the internet for medical information and had a regular doctor and blood work done once or twice a year, 58% of respondents said they were unfamiliar with the illness.

We Missed 100 Million Adult Vaccines – Here’s How We Get Back on Track

Like other pandemics throughout human history, COVID-19 has caused profound changes that are still rippling through our societies, even as people are understandably eager to move on. In fact, these impacts are all the more dangerous when they are largely ignored or effectively invisible. The decline in adult vaccination may be one of the most significant, as a new report finds that ~100 million doses were missed in 2021 and 2022 alone – reversing global progress towards widespread adult immunisation as a new standard of care in a world of more old than young.

New Analysis Shows Lost Ground on Adult Immunisation During the Pandemic with 100 Million Doses Potentially Missed

New data shared today by GSK, in collaboration with the IQVIA Institute for Human Data Science and the Global Coalition on Aging (GCOA), estimate approximately 100 million fewer doses of some adult vaccines (excluding Covid-19 vaccines) were administered in 2021 and 2022 than anticipated, based on the global vaccination adoption trends observed from 2013 to 2020, compounding already low adoption rates pre-pandemic.

Going Beyond Applause: The Potential of Caregiving to Unlock Job Opportunities of the Future

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of caregivers – staff and family who provide care for older and dependent people to carry out activities such as eating or moving - catapulted to the front of our collective conscience. The daily applause for front-line care workers showed a high level of recognition for their incredible work and provided insight into how our health systems must change as our society ages. We need to continue to recognise caregivers as essential to our ageing society.

High-Level Forum on the Silver Economy 2023

Join us for the High-Level Forum on the Silver Economy 2023. Now in its fourth year, the Silver Economy Forum 2023, December 6 and 7, will explore aging at every stage of life, looking at the growing global Silver Economy through a multigenerational lens. Linking to the goals and aspirations of the UN Decade of Healthy Ageing, SEF 2023 will highlight key themes at the intersection of aging at every age, and the Silver Economy.