Vermont’s seniors are the healthiest in the United States, according to a recent report.
That’s critically important for the Green Mountain State, which also has the highest percentage of senior residents in the United States, according to 2013 figures collected by Kaiser Family Foundation.
With 18 percent of the population 65 or older, keeping seniors in good health is essential to reducing overall medical spending.
State figures show Medicare, the government health coverage program for seniors and the disabled, accounts for 22 percent of the state’s more than $5 billion in annual health care spending.
Having the structures in place to keep seniors healthy will only become more important as projections show the percentage growth in Vermont’s population 65 or older is expected to outpace growth in the country as a whole.
The report cites projections that the U.S. will be more than 20 percent seniors by 2030, while state figures project Vermont’s senior population will be nearly 30 percent.
The United Health Foundation’s America’s Health Rankings Senior Report ranked Vermont number one this year, up from fourth place last year. This is the third year the health insurance giant’s foundation has released its Senior Report.
New Hampshire was ranked number two, and all six New England states ranked in the top 15.
Vermont ranked in the top 10 for 21 of 43 measurements of seniors’ health, including the availability of home delivered meals, low-income food assistance and low admissions to the intensive care unit.
“Vermont’s seniors should be congratulated for doing a lot of things well to stay healthy,” said Health Commissioner Harry Chen in a statement, though he noted there are areas where the state still needs to improve.
The state ranked poorly for the prevalence of chronic drinking, low hospice care use, and a high rate of falls.
The Health Department and the Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living are working to expand screening, intervention and referral to substance abuse programs among older adults to help address chronic drinking among seniors in Vermont.
