The Department of Labor and Workforce Development has found that Alaska’s population ages 65 and older have increased by 3,388 between July 2013 and July 2014 reaching 71,080.
The state’s senior population has increased from 8 percent to 10 percent since 2010 and the Kenai Peninsula is included in the Gulf Coast region which has the highest share of seniors at 13 percent, followed by Southeast at 12 percent.
Demographer David Howell with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development said typically Alaska has had a younger population however our “baby boomer” generation is aging into senior status.
Howell: “Historically we have not had a senior citizen population so we don’t have some of the things in place that this population might need and that will definitely lead to changes. But for the most part our migration by age is pretty stable by an annual basis and a lot of people come in and out of the state, about 40,000 move people move in and about 40,000 people move out every year”
The population ages 20 to 64 totaled 457,839 in 2014, up 10,386 from 2010. The under 20 population was 206,682, little-changed from 207,840 in 2010.