The costs of triple jeopardy : aging, developmental disabilities, and Ohio's impending care shift

Abstract

State policy makers and legislators are paying attention to issues related to the aging of Ohio s population, namely, the impact of increasing longevity on the current older cohort, and the coming swell in the older population represented by the baby boom cohort. Less attention has been paid to aging families of baby boomers with MR/DD. This population is known as the Double Jeopardy population, as it refers to the need for care and support in two-generation households of frail older adults and their adult children with MR/DD. An entire generation of aging parents who have been the primary source of care and support for these children is entering high-risk years for morbidity and mortality. The loss of informal support represented by this change and a shift to formal support is inevitable and imminent. This support shift (called Care Shift) will produce a Cost Shift, a change from the use of family financial and/or labor resources to public resources. This project was designed to contribute to our understanding of the projected magnitude and impact of the shift from informal to formal care/support of Baby Boomers with MR/DD.