With rapid demographic changes in Korea, the population aged 65 and over have increased in both proportion and number. In 10 years, those aged 65 and over will take up 20% of the Korean population. In addition, the diversity among older persons is increasing because of the dramatic socioeconomic changes over the last 40 years. Therefore, it is time we come up with long-term policy strategies in response. Under these circumstances, this study is aimed to evaluate welfare polices on older persons and suggest strategies to enhance their quality of life.
This study consists of four parts. Part 1 reviews previous evaluations of policies on older persons and existing statistics on the characteristics of older persons. Part 2 presents the results of valuation(in terms of the coverage, adequacy and equity) of policies concerning economic security, health, long-term care, labor and leisure activities. Based on these evaluations, policy issues and strategies are discussed. Part 3 presents the results of survey regarding policy issues and strategies of welfare polices for older persons. The respondents are professors and researchers on gerontology. The last part makes policy suggestions and priority setting toward the society older persons can enjoy stable and active lives.