Alabama Business Q2/2004
A Profile of Older
Alabamians
Population Size and Composition.
Alabama was home to 592,181 people 65
and over on July 1, 2003, according to
Census Bureau estimates. The state’s
older population increased by 12,383
since 2000, a 2.1 percent gain that
exceeded the 1.2 percent total population increase. There were 522,989
Alabamians 65 and over in 1990. Older
residents as a share of total population
increased only slightly from 12.9 percent
in 1990 to 13.0 percent in 2000. It
reached 13.2 percent in 2003. Residents
85 and over numbered 67,301 in 2000
and climbed to an estimated 71,484 in
2003. Between 1990 and 2000, persons
85 and over rose 18,794, a 38.7 percent
increase.
Women outnumber men, with the discrepancy increasing sharply with age.
The 65 and over population in Alabama
was 39.9 percent male and 60.1 percent
female in 2000. While there were 79
men for every 100 women in the 65 to
74 age group, for age 85 and over the
ratio was just 36. Alabama’s older population is less diverse than its younger
residents. Eighty percent of individuals
65 and over reported their race as white
alone on the 2000 census, while 18.9
percent selected black alone. Among
Alabama’s population under age 65,
69.8 percent list their race as white alone
and 27.1 percent fall into the black alone
category.
Marital Status
and Living
Arrangements.
Older men are much
more likely than
older women to be
married and living
with their spouse.
In the 65 to 74 age
group, 76.3 percent
of men and 49.1
percent of women
reported this marital
status in 2000. But
for the oldest age
group, these numbers dropped
sharply—45.4 percent of men 85 and
over and just 6.7
percent of women lived with a spouse in
2000. By the time they reach age 75,
most older women (60.7 percent) are
widowed. By contrast, just 19.1 percent
of men in the 75 to 84 age group were
widowers.
Among Alabamians 65 and over, 54.4
percent resided in family households,
while 45.6 percent lived in a nonfamily
household setting—primarily living alone.
There were 28,924 elderly residents in
group quarters in 2000, including 24,623
in institutions including nursing homes.
This compares to 22,704 institutionalized
elderly in 1990. Most older householders own their homes—82.3 percent in
2000 compared to 17.7 percent renting.
Home ownership among older Alabamians rose during the decade; in 1990,
79.4 percent of older householders
owned their homes. Older residents are
likely to remain in the
state, at least until very
late in life, when living
arrangements may change
as a result of failing
health. Between 1995 and
2000, 19,765 persons 65
and over moved into
Alabama, while 16,734
moved out for a net gain
of 3,031.
Health Status. The ability
to function independently
is a key component of a
good quality of life for the
older population. In 2000
about 275,000 state residents 65 and
over, or 49.5 percent of the noninstitutionalized older population, were affected by at least one long-lasting condition
or disability. Over 197,000 older residents (35.5 percent) have a physical condition that limits basic activities such as
walking, climbing stairs, lifting, or carrying. And one in four Alabamians 65 or
older has difficulty going outside the
home to shop or visit a doctor.
Seventeen percent of older residents suffer from blindness, deafness, or a severe
vision or hearing impairment. Over
81,000 have difficulty learning, reading,
or concentrating, while close to 72,000
have a condition that makes it hard to
dress, bathe, or get around inside the
home.
Alabamians 65 and Over
by Type of Disability, 2000
Number Percent
Number of Disabilities
None
One
Two or more
280,361
118,603
156,441
50.5
21.4
28.2
Type of Disability
Sensory
Physical
Mental
Self-care
Go-outside-home
94,555
197,242
81,229
71,904
139,401
17.0
35.5
14.6
12.9
25.1
Note: Disabilities are for the noninstitutionalized population. Individuals may mark
multiple disabilities.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau.
Q2/2004 Alabama Business
Transportation. Access to transportation
is another important factor in the quality
of life and independence of the older
population. According to Census 2000,
most older Alabamians have a vehicle
available—just 9.7 percent of residents
aged 65 to 74 and 22.1 percent of those
75 and over had no vehicle available.
But having a vehicle parked at a residence does not mean that the individual
is willing or able to drive. A 2004 study
by the American Public Transportation
Association and the AARP reported that
104,207 (18.0 percent) of Alabamians 65
and older were non-drivers in 2000.
They estimate that on any given day, 69
percent of these non-drivers stay home
due to lack of transportation on average
in the four-state region consisting of
Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and
Tennessee.
Income and Poverty. Median household
income in 1999 peaked between the ages
of 45 and 54 at $46,705. Income then
tapers off fairly rapidly—at $25,676,
median household income for Alabamians aged 65 to 74 amounted to 55.0
percent of peak income, while income
of $17,729 in the 75 and over bracket
was just 36.7 percent. The 2000 census
estimated that income of 86,276 Alabama residents 65 and over fell below
the poverty level in 1999. This 15.5 percent of the older population in poverty
is down from 24.0 percent 10 years earlier. Women in this age group were much
more likely than men to live in poverty—
10.7 percent of 65 and over men and
18.8 percent of women had income in
1999 below the poverty level. Poverty
rates increased with age as 12.9 percent
of the state’s population aged 65 to 74
years lived in poverty compared to 19.0
percent of those 75 and over.
Labor Force Participation and
Employment. The youngest members of
Alabama’s 65 and over population are
most likely to work or be looking for
work. One in five residents aged 65 to
69 were in the civilian labor force in
Alabama Business is a quarterly publication
of the Center for Business and Economic
Research, Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration, The
University of Alabama. Articles reflect the
opinions of the authors, but not necessarily
2000, with 34,264 working and just 3.4
percent unemployed. Men were much
more likely to be in the labor force than
women in this group—26.3 percent of
males and 16.5 percent of females.
Employment tapers off quickly with age,
with 12.0 percent of Alabama residents
70 to 74 and 4.8 percent of those 75 and
over working in 2000.
A Growing Older Population. While
growth in the 65 and over population
will be moderate through 2010, it will
begin to accelerate in 2011 as the first of
the baby boom generation turn 65. And
as the oldest baby boomers reach 85 in
2031, that population group will increase
rapidly. This aging swell will impact all
aspects of the Alabama economy, from
health care to housing to transportation
to consumer spending, as a large segment of the population shifts from
work to retirement. Projections from
the Center for Business and Economic
Research show the state’s 65 and over
population growing by 339,426 between
2010 and 2025, for a gain of 51.4 percent. This contrasts with the addition
of just 80,545 residents to this age group
between 2000 and 2010, an increase of
13.9 percent.
in 2000. While 13.0 percent of the
state’s residents were 65 and over, shares
of county populations in this category
ranged from 8.1 percent in Lee and 8.5
percent in Shelby to 17.9 percent in
Covington. County populations will
not age at the same rate between 2000
and 2025 due in large part to migration
patterns. Expanding economic opportunity in some counties will draw more
working-aged in-migrants, while lack of
opportunity in others will result in the
loss of college- and younger working-age
Alabama’s older population was not
individuals. If this latter pattern persists,
evenly distributed across its 67 counties
counties with perennially high unemployAlabama’s Older Population, 2000 to 2025
ment such as Butler,
Choctaw, and Greene
65 and over
85 and over
could find close to a
Number
Change
Number Change
quarter of their residents in the 65 and
2000
579,798
67,301
over age group in 2025.
2005
609,135
5.1%
75,632
12.4%
Older populations
2010
660,343
8.4%
87,438
15.6%
could swell in Alabama
2015
757,211
14.7%
98,488
12.6%
counties such as Bald2020
871,646
15.1%
108,478
10.1%
win that are retirement
2025
999,769
14.7%
122,605
13.0%
destinations as well.
Note: The 65 and over population includes the 85 and
over population.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau and Center for Business and
Economic Research, The University of Alabama.
those of the staff of the Center, the faculty
of the Culverhouse College of Commerce,
or the administrative officials of The
University of Alabama.
All correspondence should be addressed to:
Editor, Alabama Business, Center for
Carolyn Trent
Business and Economic Research, Box
870221, Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0221.
Copies of this publication as well as other
socioeconomic data resources are available
on the Center website: http://cber.cba.ua.edu