Public Housing for Seniors Must Meet Today's Needs
The Urban Institute:
While many of the country's public housing developments are designed for and occupied by senior citizens, it is surprising that a recent Urban Institute study of five family developments found that 13 percent of their households were headed by persons age 62 or older.
For some families, this means grandparents have taken on the role of primary caretaker usually assumed by parents.
Interviews with these seniors confirm that approximately a quarter have assumed long-term responsibility for grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and other youngsters, due to the death, incarceration, or drug addiction of a parent.
Housing interventions for low-income seniors need to change to more effectively match the demographics and activities of today's senior-headed families.
The problems of young people in public housing, such as poor health and economic disconnection, are magnified in the older adult population who may have struggled with these concerns for decades.
Much of the nation's public housing stock for senior citizens was built for able-bodied older individuals and couples living independently.
Compared with a national sample of poor seniors, public housing residents in the five communities studied by Smith and Ferryman are much more likely to report they suffer from such chronic health conditions as hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, and asthma.
A first step for many housing authorities is to assess the health and family status of their older adult residents and plan ways to meet current and anticipated housing needs.
