In less than two decades, older adults are projected to outnumber children for the first time ever in U.S. history, according to new projections by the U.S. Census Bureau.
Nationwide in 2035, people who are 65 or older are projected to total 78 million, while children under 18 will number 76.4 million.
The bureau’s projections don’t include state-by-state statistics. But Georgia’s population is also getting older, according to the census. In 2016, 12.3 percent of the state’s population was 65 or older, up from 10.5 percent in 2007.
“Higher fertility and more international migration have helped stave off an aging population and the country has remained younger as a result,” the report says. “But those trends are changing. Americans are having fewer children and the baby boom of the 1950s and 1960s has yet to be repeated. Fewer babies, coupled with longer life expectancy equals a country that ages faster.”
These changes aren’t new to other countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain, which have older populations. In Japan, more than 1 in 4 people are at least 65. Meanwhile, Japan’s population is declining.
By 2060, nearly 1 in 4 Americans will be 65 or older, and the number of those 85 and older will triple, the report says. The country will also add a half-million centenarians by then.
“With this swelling number of older adults, the country could see greater demands for healthcare, in-home caregiving and assisted living facilities,” the bureau’s report says. “It could also affect Social Security.”
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