As we think about the health and well-being of our aging population, it is important to look closer at the numbers that illustrate this population’s vulnerabilities.

55.8 million

The number of Americans aged 65 or older in 2020. One-fourth of these older Americans live in one of three states: California, Florida, and Texas. In 2020, states with the top three highest proportion of older adults were Maine (21.8%), Florida (21.3%), and West Virginia (20.9%).

5 million

The number of people aged 65 and older living below the poverty level. (In 2020, the poverty level for a household of one was $12, 760). Additionally, at least 2.6 million older adults were classified as “near poor,” meaning their incomes were between the poverty level and 125 percent more than poverty level. Older women had a higher poverty rate when compared to older men (10.1% vs. 7.6%), and older individuals of racial and ethnic groups had higher rates of poverty: 17.2% Black Americans, 11.5% Asian Americans and 16.6% Hispanic ethnicity regardless of race. Finally, older individuals who lived alone had higher rates of poverty (15.7%) than those living with other family members (5.6%).

138,098

The number of individuals aged 55 or older who were experiencing homelessness on a given night in 2023, which is twenty percent of the overall homelessness population count. Nearly 1 in 4 of the older adults were experiencing unsheltered homelessness (living in places not meant for human habitation). The percentage of single adults aged 50 or older experiencing homelessness has climbed steadily, from 11 percent in the early 1990s to approximately 37 percent in 2003. That percentage has grown to almost 50 percent in the 2020s.