Old, Ailing and Finally a Burden Abandoned
By TIMOTHY EGAN,
Published: March 26, 1992
Clutching a teddy bear as he stared out from a hospital bed near the dog racing track where he was abandoned, 82-year-old John Kingery looked lost and helpless. But the face, that of an elderly person who does not even know his name and was left on society's doorstep, could become a face of the future.
Today, still holding the same teddy bear, he was flown back to Oregon.
In the next 30 years, the number of Americans over the age of 85 is expected to grow five-fold, to a population of 15 million. At the same time the number of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease is expected to triple from 4 million today to 12 million by the year 2020.
Increasingly, families pinched by the rising medical costs of aging parents and the strain of raising their own children are taking the radical step of abandoning the elderly, experts on aging say. 'Somewhat of a Trend'
"Granny dumping, as it's called, was unheard of 15 years ago but now the anecdotal evidence tells us it has become somewhat of a trend," said John Meyers, a spokesman for the American Association of Retired Persons, which has 33 million members. "Not a day goes by when a hospital emergency room somewhere in America doesn't have a case where some elderly person has been abandoned, usually by the children."
"The fact that children abandon their parents, as horrible as it is, is indicative of the terrible balancing act that care-givers are stuck with," said Mr. Meyers, of the association.
Federal officials estimate that as many as one in five families are caring for an aging parent. A 1989 survey by the association found that 14 percent of the people providing such care had left their full-time jobs in order to care for aging parents.
The aging of the population, together with limits on health care, offer a stark preview of what may lie ahead for millions of Americans.
Abridged
SOURCE: nytimes
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The above article was published in 1992. So what has been done to stop 'Granny Dumping'. It seems that this is happening in other countries too. Government assistance for adult children who are carers for their elderly parents is a good move.
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1 comment:
You know, there are several sides to granny dumping. Most notably is how the elderly person treated his family through the years. A month ago, government officials called wanting me to take in my elderly, confused father. He's the same person who deserted my family 50 years ago when I was 11. Take it from me, it was rough earning my own living at 11 while going to school but I did it. I am still emotionally troubled from the ordeal. I took care of myself in my childhood so I guess he can take care of himself in his old age. I'm the last person he ever thought of until he needed something.
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