WASHINGTON, May 31 (UPI) -- Elderly adults in the United States who do not drive have a significantly higher risk of entering the long-term-care system, a study finds.
A study based on data from 1,593 adults ages 65 to 84 found that former drivers and those who had never learned to drive had higher rates of entry into the long-term-care system, such as nursing homes and assisted-living facilities.
Living in a house with no other drivers was also a risk factor for needing long-term care.
The results held true even after adjusting for demographic and health variables, according to the researchers.
"We expect older adults to make good decisions about when to stop driving, but we fail to recognize the hardships that not driving imposes on an older adult," the study's authors wrote in the July issue of American Journal of Public Health.
"Innovative strategies to improve the transportation options for older adults should be developed."
