In 2024, the number of adults aged 65 and older in Puerto Rico exceeded that of individuals under 18 by more than 300,000. Meanwhile, age groups up to 24 years old saw a population decline compared to 2023 data—further confirming a trend experts have warned about for years and once again prompting the oft-repeated question: “What are we going to do?”

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According to new population estimates from the 2024 edition of the US Census Bureau, 788,787 people aged 65 or older lived in the archipelago that year, compared to 480,729 under the age of 18, representing 308,058 more older adults. In 2020, the older adult group outnumbered minors by 151,008.

While the “65+” group gained 66,219 people between April 1, 2020 (base estimate) and July 1, 2024, the under-18 group lost 90,831. In addition, the data shows that the 5-24 age group lost 19,265 people between 2023 and 2024.

“Since the 2020 Census, there has been a steady trend of increase in the elderly population in Puerto Rico. So, since 2020, the elderly population has increased by 9.2%. In contrast, the child population has decreased by 15% since 2020,” explained Cristina E. Martínez, demographer at the Census Bureau, in a virtual interview with El Nuevo Día.

The trend is repeated in the United States, where the number of states in which the number of older adults exceeds that of minors increased from three in 2020 to 11 in 2024: Florida, Maine, New Hampshire, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Oregon, Hawaii, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Montana. In response to questions from this newspaper, Martínez pointed out that Puerto Rico had the second-largest difference between the elderly and younger populations—308,058—when compared to the 11 states mentioned, surpassed only by Florida, where the difference amounts to almost 600,000.

“In general terms, what we are seeing is what we expected: that the population continues to age,” demographer Raúl Figueroa commented separately, anticipating that the trend will continue “for a long time” and that the gap between older adults and young people will continue to widen.

The Bill of Rights and Public Policy of the Government in Favor of Older Adults (Law 121 of 2019) defines the term “older adult” as any person 60 years of age or older. When comparing the current state of law and the new census estimates, the number of older adults in Puerto Rico will increase to 1,006,687 by 2024, representing 31.4% of the population.

Figueroa questioned what the State is waiting for “to make decisions” and implement public policy that responds to demographic changes, particularly given the fact that the birth rate has declined significantly. According to data from the Demographic Registry—last updated in February—2024 closed with just over 18,000 live births.

The Advocate for the Elderly, Yolanda Varela, said that the government is responding with the urgency that the trend warrants, although she acknowledged that her office does not have the necessary resources to cope with the increase in the elderly population.

“We are asking for an increase in my state budget, which was denied, and I have to say it like that, because I would be left with people I cannot serve. I fought for it, you have no idea, and it really came to nothing. They left me with the same budget, but it does not match the population increase we are currently seeing. I have the same budget as 10 or 20 years ago,” Varela said.

Currently, the budget for the Office of the Advocate for the Elderly (Oppea) amounts to $3.8 million. However, Varela estimated that they need $14 million to “be comfortable.”

“We are going to request a meeting with the fiscal control board to see how they can help me, because they denied my entire request, leaving me in the same situation, and that doesn’t make sense,” she argued. “When you look at the population (of older adults), it is quite large. So, the largest budget is given to the Department of Education, when schools are closed, when there are fewer children and fewer births; so, it doesn’t seem to work that way. We are the priority, and I don’t know what’s going on, but so far they’ve left us with the same budget.”

She also mentioned that in August they will launch the “Nutrition in Your Home” campaign, through which they hope to distribute between 14,000 and 17,000 food cards—valued at $100—to elderly people in need in the 78 municipalities. She also highlighted the Oppea initiative that provides breakfast, lunch, and snacks to all patients enrolled in the Multiple Activities and Services Centers in 65 municipalities.

Varela hopes to expand this program—in collaboration with the mayors—to the remaining 13 municipalities of Moca, San Sebastián, Lares, Maricao, Adjuntas, Ciales, Morovis, Juana Díaz, Santa Isabel, Salinas, Yabucoa, Peñuelas, and Naguabo. However, she noted that the Fiscal Oversight Board’s (FOMB) refusal to increase the budget for the next fiscal year—which begins on July 1—would jeopardize the initiative.

“We are going to fight it, we are going to go to the Fiscal Board, we are going to do what needs to be done. With the little we have, we do a lot,” she said. “I hope the Fiscal Board, which is the decision-maker, will listen to us.”

El Nuevo Día requested comments from Governor Jenniffer González, but there was no response.

In March, the governor created—by executive order—the Unit for Comprehensive Care for the Elderly, attached to La Fortaleza, which, among other things, should serve as a liaison with non-governmental entities that serve this sector, as well as propose legislation to respond to their needs. A month later, the FOMB debated the need for this office and questioned how its functions would differ from those performed by the Oppea.

In 2024, Puerto Rico’s population stood at 3,203,295, representing a population loss of 82,579 (-2.5%) compared to April 1, 2020, according to new Census estimates.

On the other hand, the median age in Puerto Rico last year was 45.6, representing an increase of 0.3 years compared to 2023, and an increase of 1.8 since 2020, when it stood at 43.8. The only municipality where the median age decreased between 2023 and 2024 was Mayagüez, from 43.0 to 42.9, while Arecibo and Guayama remained unchanged. In the other towns, there was an increase.

The Census added that, in all municipalities, there were more older adults than minors under the age of 18 in 2024, unlike in 65 towns in 2020, according to Martínez.

“We have to start planning. The government has to plan and make a plan that is visible, so that everyone knows what they are doing. This keeps happening, and it’s not a priority, and I think it’s time, I think it’s important to see this and address it, because the population continues to age, the median age is 45.6 years, one in four is over 65, which means we have a fairly old population in that sense, and the number of children being born continues to decline. What are we going to do about it?” Figueroa asked.

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Charter of Rights and Public Policy of the Government in Favor of Older Adults

By: Government of Puerto Rico

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This content was translated from Spanish to English using artificial intelligence and was reviewed by an editor before being published.