1 day Ago By Gail Matillo
As politicians grapple with the aging crisis, chronic disease control and escalating Medicare expenditures, Sen. Rick Scott has the foresight to focus policy on improving a negative health determinant that is at epidemic levels among seniors — loneliness. The health impact of loneliness is significant for populations of all ages, but among the elderly it is particularly profound.
The loneliness epidemic is even more acute for the elderly in Florida, which trails only California with over 4.6 million seniors.According to a study in JAMA Internal Medicine, up to 50% of those 60 and older are at risk of social isolation, and nearly one-fourth of adults aged 65 and older are socially isolated.
Other studies have shown that social isolation increases the risk of heart disease, stroke, dementia and premature death. The adverse health effects of loneliness are comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes per day. The mental health consequence for seniors is equally devastating, with a 50% increased risk of dementia.
Gail Matillo is president and CEO of the Florida Senior Living Association. (courtesy, Gail Matillo)The costs of loneliness are also significant, with Medicare spending billions annually on socially isolated older adults. According to a Harvard-Stanford-AARP study, Medicare spent an estimated $1,608 annually more for each socially isolated older adult than it did for those who had more social contacts.
The importance of connection and socialization is evident every day in Florida’s assisted living communities, a communal long-term care setting designed to provide seniors with a sense of dignity, independence and belonging. Many residents of senior living communities who previously lived alone and suffered from mobility issues and depression “blossom” after moving into a community where they now fill their days with art and exercise classes and making new friends. According to survey data, 75% of residents report an improved health outlook after moving into our communal setting.
Recently, U.S. News reported that 61% of seniors’ feelings of loneliness or isolation improved after moving into a senior living community; 85% of seniors have made friends since moving into a senior living community; and 21% of seniors find more meaning or purpose in daily life since moving into a community.
Assisted living communities work to combat loneliness, but it’s not the only solution. It simply takes purposeful outreach to those in need. Scott’s legislation, the SENIOR Act, is a critical and common-sense step to combat senior loneliness.
The bill will add “loneliness” to the Older Americans Act definition of disease prevention and health promotion services, allowing states to use federal funding to combat social isolation. It further directs the Secretary of HHS to develop recommendations to mitigate the detrimental effects of loneliness and examines the importance of multigenerational awareness.The cost-benefit of the SENIOR Act makes immediate sense.
The detriments of loneliness, both disease prevention and mental decline, can be abated, and billions in health care dollars could be saved, by something that requires no medical degree or costly medical procedure. We can end this epidemic by simply making a human connection. Scott’s bill will jumpstart that connection.
Gail Matillo is president and CEO of the Florida Senior Living Association..
