New report identifies health care access and economic security challenges confronting California's aging population

SAN FRANCISCO-(Business Wire)-May 7, 2007 - A compilation of three papers released today identify the challenges that California's diverse elderly population encounter when accessing health care and economic assistance programs. The report "Women, Health and Aging: Building a Statewide Movement," commissioned by The California Endowment and produced by the University of California, San Francisco's Institute for Health and Aging, identifies policies and practices that help perpetuate poverty and poor health among the state's racially and ethnically diverse low-income older women.

In addition, the report identifies strategies that can stimulate policy and program changes which could result in better health and economic security for this vulnerable population.

In an effort to move toward improved health care access and economic security for older women, representatives from organizations across the state will convene in Los Angeles on May 7, 2007 at The California Endowment's Center for Healthy Communities to begin work on building a statewide movement among the state's diverse population of older women. Social activist Dolores Huerta will be the keynote speaker and will discuss her experiences as a labor organizer and her thoughts on how to create a movement that focuses on the need of low-income seniors, particularly women.

By 2030, the population over age 65 will double and the majority of California's elderly population will be ethnic minorities, resulting in what David Hayes Bautista of UCLA refers to as "the browning of the graying of the population."

Because older women have more chronic health problems and functional disability than older men, they pay a higher percent of their income than older men for out-of-pocket health care costs. Burdened by the difficulty of accessing health care services due to higher under-insured and uninsured rates, low-income women ages 45 and older are three times as likely to report fair or poor health.

"The irony in all of this is that older women are the primary caregivers and play a pivotal role in the care of other older Californians and their families. They are more often than not the decision makers when it comes to health care. But what we've found through this research is that they are also the most vulnerable and often face significant barriers when trying to access health care services for themselves," said Dr. Carroll L. Estes, founding director of UCSF's Institute for Health and Aging.

The report "Women, Health and Aging: Building a Statewide Movement" consists of the following three papers preceded by an executive summary:

— "Improving Care and Assistance Security for Vulnerable Older Women in California"

— "The Eligibility-Benefits Gap For Aging Californians"

— "Healthy Aging for California's Immigrant and Low-Income Elders From Diverse Ethnic Backgrounds: Policy Issues and Recommendations"

The report can be downloaded by clicking on the following link:

http://www.calendow.org/reference/publications/pdf/cultural/ WomenHealthAging.pdf (Due to its length, this URL may need to be copied/pasted into your Internet browser's address field. Remove the extra space if one exists.)

The mission of The Institute for Health and Aging at UCSF is to optimize the health and aging of individuals, communities, and society through research, education and public service in the social and behavioral sciences. Please visit their Web site at http://nurseweb.ucsf.edu/iha/index.shtml for more information.

The California Endowment, a private, statewide health foundation, was established in 1996 to expand access to affordable, quality health care for underserved individuals and communities, and to promote fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians. The Endowment makes grants to organizations and institutions that directly benefit the health and well-being of the people of California. For more information, visit The Endowment's Web site at www.calendow.org.