Report: State of the (older) nation 2023

Published 7th June 2023

This landmark report on the experiences and views of Older Australians is the third of the COTA Federation’s State Of The Older Nation (SOTON) reports. After another year living with COVID-19, combined with natural disasters at home, conflict overseas and cost-of-living pressures, it is perhaps unsurprising that COTA’s 2023 report tells the story of a cohort who aren’t feeling as good about the future as they used to.

This research was commissioned by the Federation of nine Councils on the Ageing (COTA) across Australia – including all eight COTA state and territory organisations and COTA Australia – in order to understand the views, life experiences and needs of Australians aged 50+.

The contents of this report present an opportunity for policy-makers to represent Older Australians in their interventions. Older Australians are increasingly feeling like things are getting worse for them, fewer feel financially secure, and more are reporting difficulties accessing health services – with experiences even worse among vulnerable people.

Key findings:

• Negative personal expectations for the future reflects a broader pessimistic outlook
• Cost of living pressures are impacting the quality of life
• Increasing difficulty in accessing health services
• 1 in 4 workers feel they will never retire, with vulnerable groups especially likely to feel this way
• 35% of older Australians have experienced some form of age-related discrimination since turning 50
• Over 1 in 5 (22%) Older Australians surveyed are renting, with many vulnerable groups significantly more likely

You can read and download the report here.