While long-term care services more than the elderly, approximately 63% of residents are 65 or older. According to the Administration on Aging, population 65 years or older will increase from 14.1% of the population to 21.7% of the population by 2040. As the population ages over the course of the next 24 years, additional long-term facilities will need to meet the demand. Yet residents in nursing homes have been flat for the past year. Further, coverage of the 65 and over age demographic ranges widely across the country.
We constructed a ratio of residents in nursing homes to county populations 65 and over from the American Community Survey. Results range from .2% to 18.7% of the population. Geographic concentrations of high coverage are in the Midwest with low coverage in the west coast and Florida. The Tableau visualization shows visually the concentration. Counties highlighted in green have high coverage while those in red show lower coverage. You can use the slider to reveal counties within a range of coverage values. To interact with the Tableau visualization and the data, click HERE.
