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Nevada's Senior Population Is Growing

 

Seniors could account for nearly one-third of Nevada’s population in 2030. That’s according to state demographer Jeff Hardcastle. Speaking with our public radio partner KNPR in Las Vegas, he says rural communities, in particular, have more older people because younger ones are leaving.

 

“What’s happening nationally is the more educated young folks tend to be moving more towards the coastal and larger metropolitan areas such as the Denvers, or the Chicagos, and those kinds of cities where there is a more diverse population and more economic opportunity for them as well.”

Hardcastle says even new people moving to the state could be older. 

 

hardcastle_soundbite_2.mp3

“With the baby boom and increased life expectancy, we’re seeing an aging population nationally so even if people move here, they’re going to be older.”

Another contributing factor to an older population is the decreased birth rate in Nevada, which has been dropping since the 1970s.  

Anh Gray is a former contributing editor at KUNR Public Radio.