Regional and state patterns of population change and benefit receipt, 1980-84.

The population of the United States grew by 9.6 million (4.2 percent) from 1980 to 1984. More than 91 percent of this growth was in the South and the West. Among'the social security beneficiary population, the growth for this same period was 2.7 percent. More than 71 percent of this increase occurred in the areas served by the Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, San Francisco, and Seattle regional offices of the Social Security Administration. Thus, the geographic areas in which the greatest population increases were noted were the same for the total population and for the beneficiary population. The Nation's aged population-persons aged 65 or older-increased by 2.5 million persons (9.7 percent) in the 4-year period. Every State in the Union reported an increase in the number of persons in this age group. By the end of 1984, more than 90 percent of those aged 65 or older were receiving social security benefits. Contrary to the overall population growth and the growth in the social security beneficiary population, the proportion of persons receiving federally administered supplemental security income (SSI) payments has declined (-2.7 percent), as has the proportion of individuals receiving both social security benefits and SSI payments (-5.3 percent). This note discusses population changes and presents demographic data for each of the 10 Department of Health and Human Services regions of the United States. The text is accompanied by tables that present regional and State data. The total population in the area serviced by the Bos-ton Regional Office grew at roughly half the rate of the total U.S. population in 1980-84. For those aged 65 or older, the rate of growth was close to the average rate based on data from the Bureau of the Census and SSA administrative records. lation was receiving benefits under the old-age, survivors , and disability insurance (OASDI) program in 1984, had the largest proportion of aged persons in this region and the second largest proportion in the Nation (14.3 percent), a distinction it shared with the State of Arkansas. Massachusetts, the largest State in the region, had the largest number of persons aged 65 or older in Region I, but the proportion of OASDI beneficiaries in the State was 16.1 percent-somewhat less than that of Rhode Island but still among the top 10 for the United States. Vermont was number 49 when the States were ranked by the number of residents aged 65 or older. …