The oldest old: a fresh perspective or compassionate ageism revisited?

A focus on persons aged 85 and over is a timely measure for better understanding the implications of population aging. Yet, it may generate inaccurate stereotypes that reinforce anxieties about conflicts between age groups in the allocation of health and social welfare resources. Alternative constructs enable consideration of a variety of options that differ from unnecessary extrapolations from existing public policies. These range from market initiatives, through state and local government actions, to federal intervention for meeting the challenges of becoming "an aging society."