Sharing increasing costs on declining income: the visible dilemma of the invisible aged.

The federal government considers all persons aged 65 and over a single beneficiary group, and data collectors consider them a single cohort. As a result, the very old (80 years and over) are virtually invisible; little is known about their specific income benefits and economic resources. Costs for the very old--a more economically diverse group than the nonaged--are likely to grow disproportionately. Recent proposals to share costs will affect the distribution of income and assets among the aged and between generations.