Older Americans are steadily becoming a larger share of the population, a change that is especially notable in Florida. By 2040, the Sunshine State is expected to have almost 7 million older adults, with more than 1.2 million of those age 85 or older.
The Department of Geriatrics at the Florida State University College of Medicine continues to lead efforts to reshape health care to serve older patients’ unique needs. It was recently awarded a five-year, $5 million grant from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
HRSA’s Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) funds only two programs in Florida, and this is the third grant for the FSU-based North and Central Florida GWEP (NCF-GWEP) since its inception in 2015. Florida has the highest percentage of older adults of any state in the U.S., and the number of older adults moving to Florida from other states continues to increase.
