US homeless number to soar by 2020

A rights organization’s report says the number of homeless senior citizens in the US will surge by a third over the next decade.

A report published on Monday by the National Alliance to End Homelessness predicts that the homeless population in the USA will rise by 33 percent in the next ten years and more than double between 2010 and 2050, due to the aging of the so-called baby boomers — those born during the 1950s.

The report also points to the current levels of poverty among the elderly as a main contributor to the incremental rise in the number of homeless Americans turning 65 or older.

Senior citizens now make up around 12.6 percent or 37 million of the US population, of whom roughly 1 million live in extreme poverty.

The aged population is expected to climb to 89 million people by 2050.