The Detroit Area Agency on Aging released the 2020 edition of their “Dying Before Their Time” report back in August and made the startling discovery that metro Detroit seniors are more likely to die earlier than seniors in other parts of the state.
According to the report, which was started back in 1997 and focuses on the mortality rates of seniors ages 50-plus, the death rate for seniors ages 60-74 is 48% higher in metro Detroit than in other parts of the state and is nearly 122% higher for seniors aged 50-59.
The report also found that 89% of older adults have at least one chronic illness while 39% have three or more.
This study was release before the coronavirus pandemic but gives insight into a senior health crisis in our area and offers precautions that should be taken around seniors.
It also exposes the truth that those who live in impoverished or medically underserved areas are at a severe disadvantage when it comes to their health and unchecked illnesses.
Ronald S Taylor, the president and CEO of the Detroit Area Agency on Aging sees the report as “a call to action for our region” as “the research confirms that something startling is happening to our older neighbors.”
He and others with the Detroit Area Agency on Aging call for meaningful policy changes that address the imbalance of resources and the “Social Detriments of Health” including appropriate nutrition, housing, access to appropriate health care and social services, a clean water supply, education, mental health services jobs and more.
To read the complete report, visit the Detroit Area Agency on Aging’s website and for more information on caring for an aging loved one in metro Detroit and Ann Arbor, visit our Guide to Helping an Aging Parent at MetroParent.com.
