Aging and Disability

Part 1 Identify 2 or 3 issues faced by the aging population 1. Health 2. Job security 3.

Lack of respect from the younger youth1. What is ageism?How does ageism influence the presence of diversity in society? Ageism is a negative bias against a person or group of people on the grounds of age. Ageism or age discrimination is stereotyping against individuals or groups because of their age. It is usually focused on two targets: young adults and older adults, but it can affect any employee of any age. It shows in many researches that women are likely to experience the effect of such action before the age of 21 and the age of 40, as with men that are under the age of 18 and over the age of 50.

So, both will have similar affects just in different age range (www.diversiton.com).2. What is the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)? How does ADEA address issues for the aging population?The ADEA is a federal law that prohibits age discrimination by employers with more than 20 employees that are over the age of 40, It also protects workers that are 40 years and older from being fired and then being replaced by someone that is younger in age. But it also works the other way around as if an older person was hired in place of a younger employee.

Even with the ADEA in place all age groups are still fighting for their rights. ADEA has went as far as taking employer’s to court of age discrimination because someone being too old for a job (www.eeoc.gov ).

3. What is being done to address the issues you identified?Well for one Health is still a big issues that all ages are struggling with right now in today’s society. It is hard for someone to get health insurance if they can’t retire and older people don’t have the money to even pay for insurance. Job security is being addressed by the laws that have been in place that not hiring an older adult is age discrimination and can be taken to court because of the action they seem fit. Lack of respect from the younger group is still a problem and can be fixed, by a parent to teach their kids too respect your elders because if it wasn’t for them we wouldn’t be here.

4. Is the number of aging population expected to rise in numbers or decrease?The ageing population is going to rise in numbers because where the world population has experienced continuous growth since the end of the Great Famine and the Black Death in 1350, where is stood at around 370 million. Global increases above 1.8% per year.

The total annual births were highest in the late 1980s at about 134 million. As current projections show that an increase will happen in population. As many couples have babies and they grow up and get older it is like a chain reaction. The more the population grows the numbers will increase. And older people are living longer then it was back in history (www.wikipedia.

org/population).5. What types of legislation may or may not be affected by the aging population?Anti-age discrimination legislation is for better health and a statutory rise in the retirement age to manage the cost of the state pension bill which will see older people working for a longer period of time even if they don’t want to. In the long term there will be rise in demand for health care and creating a challenge for the funding of public services. The government now wants to cut Medicare spending and that wouldn’t be good for the older groups as they struggle now with the cost of health care. Some legislation helps others as it doesn’t help other people (www.

brainmass.com).6. How does poverty affect the aging population?What I have found was that poverty doesn’t affect senior men and women the same.

As studies show that the rate of poverty in women over the age of 65 is 21.1% while only 11.1% of senior men are living in poverty. Most women would only work fewer hours and at lower paying jobs than men.

Also women have longer life expectancies and with those women will outlive their husbands and the worst case is losing the financial stability they are used to. Women also has a disadvantage because they are the ones that give childbirth and most stay home and be housewife’s.Part 21. What does the ADA provide for people with disabilities?The ADA is “American’s with Disabilities Act. It makes it illegal to discriminate based on disability in several areas of life.

It forbids discrimination on the basis of disability in employment, and service rendered by the state and even the local government. This law helps people with epilepsy, spinal cord injuries, and even Aids and many more disabilities that are covered under this act. A person that is in a wheelchair has the same rights that people that can walk them just need accommodations that will help them get the job done. There are many disabilities that are over looked in the work place and this act helps the disabled keep the job (http://www.

ada.gov/).2. How have people with disabilities been treated in the past?I feel that people with disabilities have been treated without respect in the past. It isn’t their fault that they are disabled.

Many insurance companies would not even pay medical bills for someone that is disabled in the past, it was a fighting battle. And many people that would see someone that is missing a leg or their face is deformed, people would stare and laugh at them, which would is worse for them to deal with their disabilities. Many mean people would call people names with disabilities like “Freak”, “Retarded”. It does still happen but not as much like in the past.3. How has the attitude toward people with disabilities change over time?Back in the early years, people who had disabilities were placed in institutions by the government and even by family members, because they might not have been able to handle someone that has a disability.

Most of the time these people with a disability where forgot about also. Many of them where abused, mistreated. But now, they have programs to help family members take care of the loved ones. And now the disabled are not overlooked as much as they use to be. People are helping out to make sure the disabled can function with every day activates.

In most situations now, everyone is becoming equal. Still there is more to come over for it to be done the right way (www.unicef.org/disabilities/index_66543.

html?).4. What are some unique circumstances or issues encountered by people with disabilities?As I have been reading, I have found that many friends, neighbors and strangers may react negative to someone that is disabled. Many are stared at and even ignored. A big issue that they dealt with was getting the special help they needed to survive.

Before ADA was passed, many with disabilities found it very difficult to find a job and even keep the job they have. I have seen were a disabled would found it hard to park in a handicap parking space because someone that wasn’t handicap would park in the spot. There are many issues that people with disabilities have encountered, but with dedication we can make them feel part of us no matter what their disability is.5. What is being done to address those issues?Well many things are being done with these issues.

One would be if someone is caught parking in a handicap sign, they will get a $500 fine. Also with the ADA that was past, no one with a disability can be turned down for a job. And also more programs and resources are being made easier to get for people with their disabilities. Many laws have been enforced that will stop discrimination towards people that have disabilities.

Also many housing developments are making it handicap accessible so they can have a place to live without worrying where they will live.6. What types of legislation have been introduces to address issues faced by people with disabilities?Well at first federal legislation was to protect civil rights which was focused more on preventing racial discrimination. It all started in 1973 when the Rehabilitation Act was put in place that prohibited discrimination towards someone with a disability receiving assistance by the government but it didn’t protect from getting discrimination by employers, public accommodations.

But in 1988 is when the Fair Housing Act was amended to add people with disabilities and families with children. Then on January 23, 1990 Congress passed the “Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and it was signed into law by President George Bush. This law prohibits any discrimination towards anyone with disabilities (www.ushistory.com).