Older People’s Health and Long-Term Care During COVID-19

This policy note examines the major impacts of COVID-19 on various aspects of older peoples’ lives and health and long-term care (LTC) systems. It also provides a close review and analysis of public health measures and their impact in seven countries: Japan, Germany, Republic of Korea (Korea), Thailand, Vietnam, the United Kingdom (UK, specifically England), and the United States (US). Globally, older people have been one of the most affected groups during the pandemic. An adequate response to the impact was neglected or delayed in many countries, hence there is a critical need for systems to be more prepared. To better protect the increasing population of older people with complex health and care needs under the current prolonged pandemic, as well as during future ones, countries with limited resources should continue to strengthen their extant community-based care systems and foster the engagement of families and civil society in elder care. These countries also need to establish formal LTC systems and increase financial and workforce capacities of their systems. Care innovations through digitalization can provide useful tools to improve system efficiency and coverage, but better evidence and further policy efforts are necessary for effective use of these tools in the development of inclusive and integrated health and care systems resilient to future pandemics. Quality, timely, comparable data is crucial to support policy making and evaluation of aged-care systems promoting the health and well-being of later life for all.