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A Profile of Older Americans: 2002
Geographic Distribution
In
2000, about half (52%) of persons 65+ lived in nine states. California
had over 3.6 million; Florida 2.8 million; New York 2.4 million;
Texas 2.1 million; and Pennsylvania 1.9 million. Ohio, Illinois,
Michigan, and New Jersey each had well over 1 million (Figure
4).
Person 65+ constituted
14.0% or more of the total population in 9 states in 2000 (Figure
4): Florida (17.6%); Pennsylvania (15.6%); West Virginia (15.3%);
Iowa (14.9%); North Dakota (14.7%); Rhode Island (14.5%); Maine
(14.4); South Dakota (14.3); and Arkansas (14.0%). In fourteen
states, the 65+ population increased by 20% or more between 1990
and 2000 (Figure 5): Nevada (71.5%);
Alaska (59.6%); Arizona
(39.5%); New Mexico
(30.1%); Hawaii (28.5%);
Utah (26.9%); Colorado
(26.3%); Delaware
(26.0%); South Carolina
(22.3%); Wyoming (22.2%);
Texas (20.7%); North
Carolina (20.5%);
Idaho (20.3%); and
Georgia (20.0%). The eleven jurisdictions with the highest
poverty rates for elderly over the period 1998-2000 were Mississippi
(17.7%); Louisiana (16.8%); District of Columbia (16.7%);
Alabama (15.3%); Tennessee (15.2%); Arkansas (15.2%); New Mexico
(14.5%); Kentucky (13.3%); West Virginia (13.2%); New York (13.1%);
and Texas (13.0%).
Most persons 65+
lived in metropolitan areas in 2000 (77.5%). About 50% of older
persons lived in the suburbs, 27% lived in central cities, and
23% lived in nonmetropolitan areas.
The elderly are
less likely to change residence than other age groups. In 1999
only 4.2% of elderly households had moved since 1998 (compared
to 16.5% of persons under 65). Among the movers, home ownership
declined from 60% to 48%.
(Data for this
section and for Figures 4 and
5 were compiled primarily from Internet releases of the U.S. Bureau
of the Census).
Figure 4: Persons 65+ as a Percentage
of Total Population - 2000
Based on Census 2000 Data from the U.S. Bureau of the Census
Figure 5: Percentage Increase in Population 65+ -- 1990 to 2000
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