The Longevity Economy's Gap: Disaster Preparedness for an Aging America

The wind-driven fires sweeping through Los Angeles this week claimed the lives of some of the city's most vulnerable residents, highlighting the deadly consequences of being unprepared for disasters in an aging society. According to CBS News, 66-year-old Victor Shaw was found clutching a garden hose, presumably in a desperate attempt to protect his home. An 82-year-old man died in his bed, unable to escape the flames. These tragic stories serve as a stark reminder that current emergency response systems fall dangerously short in addressing the realities faced by older adults during disasters—people are at greater risk because they are likely to be less mobile, more isolated, and manage multiple health conditions.

A Growing Crisis at the Intersection of Demographics and Disasters

Statistics tell a stark story. During Hurricane Katrina, 71% of the victims in Louisiana were over age 60, despite this group representing only 15% of the population at the time. In California's 2018 Camp Fire, 85% of the 85 victims were over 60. These aren't mere numbers – they represent a systematic failure to protect older people.

The challenge is growing more urgent. By 2030, one in five Americans will be 65 or older. But behind those numbers is a reality we often overlook: Older adults are not a separate, special group—they are us in the future. Preparing for disasters isn’t just about the moral imperative of protecting "them." It’s also about ensuring that, with any luck, we will all eventually be older and have the support we will need when disaster hits. 

And, if migration and aging-in-place trends continue, a significant portion of us, and future us, are choosing to live in high-risk areas:

• Florida's coastal regions, vulnerable to hurricanes
• California's wildfire-prone communities
• East coast areas susceptible to flooding, e.g., recent flood disaster in North Carolina
• Urban heat islands where extreme temperatures pose particular risks to older residents

Why Older Adults Are At Higher Risk

Older Americans face heightened risks during disasters due to a combination of factors that make it harder for them to respond and recover effectively. For example, nearly 85% of older adults have at least one chronic condition, such as diabetes or heart disease, that requires consistent medication. Disruptions in access to healthcare and prescriptions during emergencies can be life-threatening.

Impaired mobility further increases vulnerability. Almost 40% of adults over 65 live with a disability that could impair their ability to evacuate quickly or navigate emergency shelters.

Social isolation also plays a critical role. One in four older Americans lives alone, and even more women over age 75 live alone, which can delay vital emergency notifications or limit access to help during a crisis. Without immediate support from friends or family, these individuals are at greater risk of being overlooked and even forgotten in evacuation efforts.

Finally, technology gaps leave many older adults disconnected from emergency alert systems. While smartphones are a key tool for receiving real-time updates, only 61% of adults over 65 own one. This digital divide makes it more difficult for older adults, especially lower-income households, to access crucial information during fast-moving disasters.

Minding the Infrastructure Gap

As I noted in a previous article published in the journal Generations, the nation’s emergency response systems are ill-equipped to meet the needs of a rapidly aging society. Key components of disaster infrastructure are inadequate to meet the unique challenges older adults face during emergencies. Here are just a few:

• Transportation systems, for example, rely heavily on the assumption that individuals have access to personal vehicles, can drive long distances, and are physically capable of navigating crowded evacuation routes.
• Emergency shelters also fall short. Many shelters lack basic accessibility features, such as medical equipment and facilities for medication storage. They often provide no quiet spaces to accommodate those with cognitive impairments or dementia, and staff members are rarely trained to handle the specific medical and emotional needs of older adults.
• Communication systems used in disaster response frequently overlook the sensory and cognitive challenges experienced by older people, such as hearing impairments, visual limitations, and cognitive processing differences.
• Medical centers often lack the specialized resources needed to care for an influx of frail older patients with multiple complex health conditions.

Building An Age-Ready Disaster Response Infrastructure

How should we start? The solution might begin with a three-dimensional approach to rethink and build an age-ready disaster infrastructure that can support a rapidly aging population before, during, and after a crisis event.

Public-Private Partnerships

Public-private partnerships will be essential to create an age-ready infrastructure. Government funding should prioritize core infrastructure such as transportation, shelters, and power systems that are adaptable to the diverse needs of aging population. At the same time, the private sector must drive innovation in specialized services, including health monitoring technologies, mobility assistance solutions, and location-based emergency alert systems. Community organizations should be central to the implementation, ensuring local knowledge, social networks, and faith-based organizations are leveraged to support older adults during disasters.

Policy Innovation

Federal agencies might set national standards for age-specific emergency protocols, ensuring consistency across regions while providing funding and technical assistance to implement best practices. State governments can tailor these standards to address regional risks—such as hurricanes in coastal areas or wildfires in the West—and oversee compliance with updated building codes for senior housing.

Local governments play a crucial role in on-the-ground implementation, ensuring that community-level disaster response plans address the unique needs of older residents. This includes mandating age-specific protocols that account for older adults' health complexities, medication requirements, and mobility limitations.

In addition, building codes should be updated to require greater resiliency in senior housing developments in high-risk areas prone to hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and extreme heat. These codes should include measures to ensure structures can withstand severe weather and remain operational during prolonged emergencies.

Senior housing facilities—such as skilled nursing homes and memory care centers—should be required to have backup power systems and government-approved, stress-tested emergency protocols to maintain continuity of care in a crisis. While many senior housing facilities have plans, they are often disjointed or developed in a vacuum without technical or policy insights. In collaboration with the industry, federal agencies can establish the baseline standards for these protocols. At the same time, state and local governments may conduct regular inspections to ensure facilities are prepared to handle emergencies and protect vulnerable residents.

Technology & Market Innovations

Make no mistake, the gap in disaster infrastructure isn’t just a pressing public need—it’s a significant market opportunity. While the longevity economy continues to drive innovation across healthcare, housing, and consumer technology sectors, disaster preparedness for older adults remains largely untapped.

There is immense potential to develop technologies that improve the identification, location, and support of at-risk older adults during crises. Advanced location-tracking systems could help emergency responders pinpoint vulnerable individuals, AI-powered prediction models can identify populations most at risk, and smart home systems with integrated emergency protocols can provide automatic alerts and safety measures for those unable to act quickly.

In addition to technology, specialized services are essential to address the unique health and safety needs of older adults in emergencies. Innovations such as mobile medical equipment deployment, reliable medication supply chains, mental health support, and geriatric-focused emergency response teams can ensure that older adults receive the care they need when disaster strikes.

Insurance providers might develop specialized products to address unique risks for older adults in disaster-prone areas. These products could cover essentials such as home retrofitting, evacuation assistance, replacement of lost mobility devices and medications, and fraud protection services during disaster recovery. 

Demography & Disaster Are Destiny

The collision of an aging population and the rising frequency of natural disasters demands immediate attention and action from government, industry, and non-profits. The longevity economy is reshaping how Americans approach aging. It’s time to extend that transformative thinking to disaster preparedness, ensuring we protect the most vulnerable among us—a group that, with time, includes all of us.

Please comment here and follow me on LinkedIn Dr. Joe Coughlin and share and subscribe to my newsletter, Longevity Economy, as I explore the impact of changing demographics and behavior on business, government, and society.