Population Continues to Age

That title sounds like a no-brainer, doesn’t it? A recent Washington Post story, U.S. continues to get older and more diverse, new estimates show, is about the recently released Census report.

Since 2000, the national median age has increased by 3.4 years to 38.8, with the largest single-year gain of 0.3 years coming in 2021, the year after the coronavirus pandemic hit, according to the bureau’s new 2021 population estimates, an annual data set that is used to fine-tune and update existing statistics.

The birthrate nationwide has been declining, and decreased immigration levels have accelerated the decline.

Between 2020 and 2021, 47 states and the D.C. saw an increase in median age; only Montana, New Hampshire, and West Virginia had no change in median age.

The Northeast was the oldest region in 2021, with a median age of 40.4, followed by the Midwest (39.0), the South (38.6) and the West, which saw the largest increase, up 0.3 years to 37.7, the bureau said.

The full Census report is available here.