A new report from the CDC shows some good news for older adults in Arizona. According to the report, people in Arizona have a life expectancy of more than 20 years after the age of 65, with 15 of those years healthy. This places Arizona as one of the top states in the nation for life expectancy, with a good quality of life in the later years of life. Some of the reasons for the good health outcomes for older adults in the State are better injury prevention through education and programs and lower rates of chronic disease such as heart disease and some types of cancer.
Our Healthy Aging Program has several resources for older adults in Arizona, including a Healthy Living Guide, reports on the health status of people 65 and older and links to events and agencies that provide services for older adults. The Healthy Aging Program is looking to the future to develop a framework for addressing emerging health trends with older adults, which is a fast growing segment of our population.
Some of the emerging issues are increased suicide attempts, sexually transmitted disease rates including HIV, and Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. We’ll be looking for ways to address these health factors so Arizona will continue to be a place where we can have long, healthy lives after retirement age.
