LAWMAKERS PLAN FOR AGING BOOM STATE SENIOR POPULATION TO DOUBLE BY 2020.

Byline: STEVE GEISSINGER Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO -- With the number of California seniors expected to double by 2020, lawmakers plan to create a strategy for dealing with the aging population -- on issues from affordable housing to health care.

In league with a coalition of senior-advocacy groups, lawmakers intend to introduce legislation next year that will lay the groundwork for providing a range of senior services.

``A decade from now, we don't want Californians and the political process to engage in inter-generational warfare,'' said Gary Passmore, director of the Congress of California Seniors. ``We don't want seniors and schoolkids to be pitted against one another for scarce resources.''

According to the Assembly Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care, about 4million of California's 36million residents are seniors -- a number that will nearly double in relation to the total population by 2020.

In Los Angeles County, the number of seniors will double to more than 2million by 2020 and to 3million by 2040.

``California is facing a tidal wave of aging baby boomers,'' said Assemblyman Dave Jones, a Sacramento Democrat who plans to co-write legislation. ``We need to act now to ensure that we provide adequate health care, housing and protection from financial and other forms of abuse.''

A report by Assemblywoman Patty Berg, D-Santa Rosa, who heads the aging committee, recommends improvements in Medi-Cal services, along with better driver screening programs, building codes that reflect the needs of the elderly and stiffer penalties for those who prey on seniors.

``Right now, the system (for elderly care) is very fragmented and rather disorganized, with something like 35 different programs in seven different departments,'' said Nina Harwell of the American Association of Retired Persons.

``Overwhelmingly, what our members want are home- and community-based services. Very often the current system tends to favor more institutional care, such as nursing homes.''

One of the principal services under discussion is Medi-Cal, California's version of Medicare, which subsidizes health care for the poor and elderly.

Spending on Medi-Cal is nearing 10percent of the state's $100billion-a-year budget. By 2015, Medi-Cal's costs are expected to climb to more than $50billion, with the elderly accounting for nearly one-third of the spike, according to the San Francisco-based Public Policy Institute of California.

Adequate preparation could save billions in taxpayer dollars, says the coalition of senior groups, which includes the Gray Panthers, the Older Women's League and the Alzheimer's Association.

Lawmakers and senior activists compare the need to brace for the graying of California to the government's response to the initial Baby Boom, with construction of highways, waterworks, schools, parks and hospitals.

``No state has ever seen a demographic shift like this,'' Berg said. ``There is no roadmap because it's never happened before. That's why it's crucial that we begin planning now.

``California is either going to get ready or get swamped. It's really that simple.''

steve.geissinger(at)angnewspapers.com

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