With the impending retirement of some 76 million baby boomers in a period of huge government deficits, public anxiety about the social and economic health of an aging nation is widespread. The policy debates are contentious -- from deciding who should receive limited subsidized housing and medical services to the ongoing battle over "saving" Social Security and other entitlement programs. Some policy makers and pundits forecast disaster: elderly people will be put out to pasture with inadequate health care and financial resources, and a crumbling social welfare infrastructure will implode under the strain of intergenerational conflict.
In Aging Nation, renowned experts James H. Schulz and Robert H. Binstock agree that there is considerable cause for concern but insist that a demographic tsunami is not inevitable. Drawing from the most current data, the authors provide an in-depth analysis of the nation's evolving private and public policies on retirement, faltering employer pensions, health care, workplace conditions, and entitlement programs. They consider such timely issues as poverty among older people, rejoining the workforce after retirement, Social Security and health care reform, as well as the rise of elderly people as a powerful political force.
Dispelling popular myths and misconceptions perpetrated by politicians and pundits, Schulz and Binstock consider the economic, political, and social challenges arising from the aging U.S. population, and present a balanced -- and reassuring -- assessment of the future.

Customer Reviews:

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

A look America's problem of the impeding retirement of its baby boomer generation:

When the social security system was invented, few people lived past the age of seventy. But in the modern era, it's almost a given that seeing eighty is an easy feat. "Aging Nation: The Economics and Politics of Growing Older in America" is a look America's problem of the impeding retirement of its baby boomer generation. Postulating that the collapse of Social Security is not entirely unavoidable, "Aging Nation" is an in depth look at every aspect of age and its politics, not just concerning Social... more info

A "Must" Read This Presidential Election Year:

"Aging Nation" is both highly informative and carefully reasoned. The co-authors, James Schulz, a well known economist, and Robert Binstock, a widely respected political scientist, have succeeded in combining several decades of work in their respective disciplines to produce a highly readable book for the general public.
Covering a variety of issues, ranging from retirement and Social Security to healthcare, the authors first present prevailing views followed by their careful analysis based on... more info

A Useful Reframing of the Politics and Economics of Aging:

An outstanding, readable and credible overview of the economic and political implications of the aging of America... James Schulz and Robert Binstock, two highly-respected scholars, reject sensational and ideologically-driven claims that America cannot afford to support tomorrow's elders, that today's young will be overwhelmed by pension and health care costs for tomorrow's old.
The authors identify and discuss strains in the nation's public and private retirement and health security systems. The... more info

A dishonest polemic, but easy to read and useful for framing issues:

This book is unbalanced. I expected, since the authors are experts, for a balanced account, but the authors, writing for a popular audience, elect to say that aging is not a problem for America. Yet their citations say the evidence is equivocal. On page 18-19: "A number of factors can render obsolete today's projections regarding the future of old-age programs...". "Economist Henry Aaron of the Brookings Inst reminds us that projections in the arena of public policy almost invariably prove to be wrong", "As... more info

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