Health and Family Services Cabinet
Elder Readiness is Focus of Regional Forums; Public invited to provide input, learn about senior preparedness planning

 A series of public forums will be held across the state to collect input and data to help communities plan and prepare for the impending growth in Kentucky’s senior population.
The forums are part of the Kentucky Elder Readiness Initiative (KERI), a collaborative effort between the state Division of Aging Services in the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, the University of Kentucky Graduate Center on Gerontology and the state’s 15 Area Agencies on Aging. The KERI is designed to measure and enhance community-level preparedness to cope with the challenges and capitalize on the opportunities of an aging population.

“The first of the baby boomers – the largest generation in the history of the United States, people born from 1946-1964 – turn 60 this year,” said Dr. Graham Rowles, director of the UK Center on Gerontology. “The growth of the 60-plus population in Kentucky will exceed the national rate, so it’s especially important for our communities to have a plan in place to address the needs of this special population.”

According to the 2000 census, more than 670,000 Kentuckians are older than 60 – nearly 17 percent of the total population. By 2020, more than 1 million Kentuckians will be older than 60 – about 23 percent of the population.

Kentucky currently is ranked 27th in the nation in percentage of the total population older than 65. By 2020, Kentucky will have the 14th largest elder population in the nation.

The KERI community forums will help develop local profiles of resources, level of access and accommodation, quality and quantity of services and other readiness measures. Forum discussions will focus on four broad areas related to preparedness and planning for the aging of the baby boomers: community resources; health and safety; quality of life; and community involvement.

The forums are free and open to the public. KERI officials said in order to develop the most comprehensive local readiness profiles possible, they hope those attending the forums include representatives of local government, business and industry, the faith community, civic and social organizations, education and workforce training professionals and health and aging services providers.

KERI community forums were held in Mayfield, Owingsville, Owensboro and Hopkinsville in June. The remaining forums are scheduled as follows:

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