As Rural Communities Brace For Population Shift, State Shaping Aging Plan

In less than five years, older adults will outnumber children in Missouri for the first time ever.

By 2060, estimates are that seniors will greatly outnumber minors. 

With those startling demographics, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services is asking residents to shape the state’s first-ever Master Plan on Aging, a 10-year roadmap to guide how older Missourians will live, work and receive care in the coming decades.

The draft plan, “Aging with Dignity: Missouri’s Master Plan on Aging,” is open for public comment through Sept. 15. 

Missouri currently ranks in the top half of the United States in percentage of population aged 65 or older. 

According to data from the Population Reference Bureau, 17.7 percent of Missourians are senior citizens. That ranks 22nd in the country. 

DHSS says there are more than 1.1 million Missourians that are over 60. Fifteen percent of Missourians are disabled. 

As the population ages, DHSS says the number of disabled individuals is expected to increase.

The demographic shift “will have a profound impact on the volume and types of services and support that states provide to older and adults and people with disabilities, as well as family caregivers.”

The challenges will be especially pressing in rural Missouri where hospitals have closed and long-term care facilities are sparse. 

The Master Plan on Aging is designed to make Missouri more age-friendly by coordinating services across agencies, expanding resources for seniors and caregivers and addressing gaps in everything from housing to healthcare.

The draft plan grew out of two years of public town halls, surveys and an advisory council that assessed what works now, what’s missing, and what’s needed to help seniors live safely and independently.

Former Gov. Mike Parson established the Master Plan on Aging by executive order in 2023. 

“The amount of participation and support we have seen from Missourians across the state over the past two years has been inspiring,” said Mindy Ulstad, who leads the Bureau of Senior Programs within DHSS. “We feel confident that the plan, which is the result of an immense amount of collaboration and active listening, will encompass the needs and wants for all Missourians as we age.”

Residents can read the draft and submit comments by emailing MOStatePlanOnAging@health.mo.gov or through the Department of Health and Senior Services website.