This article focuses on the mobility of veterans who are of retirement age. An attempt is made
to fit the types of moves realized by older veterans into the typology established in the existing
literature. Hypotheses are tested regarding the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics
of four mobility types. Additionally, the relationship between mobility and ambulatory care use
is examined to determine the impact mobile veterans have on their destination resources. The
results show that most sociodemographic characteristics associated with mobility types of the
general elderly population are also present in the older veteran population. Interstate migrants
are less likely to use outpatient services at destination than are other mobility types. Among
ambulatory care users, mandatory treatment veterans, veterans who considered Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) locations in their migration decision, veterans who live within 5 miles of
a VA facility, and disabled veterans had greater odds of using VA facilities.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Biggar, J. C. (1980). Who moved among the elderly, 1965-1970: A comparison of types of older movers. Research on Aging, 2, 73-91.
2.
Biggar, J. C., Cowper, D. C., & Yeatts, D. E. ( 1984). National elderly migration patterns and selectivity: 1955-1960, 1965-1970, and decade trends. Research on Aging , 6, 163-188.
3.
Bradsher J. E., Longino, C. F., Jr., Jackson, D. J., & Zimmerman, R. S. (1992). Health and geographic mobility among the recently widowed. Journal of Gerontology, 47, S261-S268.
4.
Cowper, D. C., & Corcoran, E. H. (1989). Older veterans—Possible forerunners of migration: Migration patterns of the elderly veteran population versus the general elderly population, 1960-1980. Journal of Applied Gerontology, 8, 451-464.
5.
Cowper, D. C., & Longino, C. F., Jr. (1992). Veteran interstate migration and VA health service use. The Gerontologist, 32, 44-50.
6.
Flynn, C. B., Longino, C. F., Jr., Wiseman, R. F., & Biggar, J. C. (1985). The redistribution of America's older population: Major national migration patterns for three census decades, 1960-1980. The Gerontologist, 25, 292-296.
7.
Happel, S. K., Hogan, T. D., & Sullivan, D. ( 1983). The social and economic impact of Phoenix area winter residents. Arizona Business, 30, 3-10.
8.
Hogan, T. D. (1987). Determinants of the seasonal migration of the elderly to Sunbelt states. Research on Aging, 9, 115-133.
9.
Horgan, C., Taylor, A., & Wilensky, G. (1983). Aging veterans: Will they overwhelm the VA medical system? Health Affairs, 2, 77-86.
10.
Kosloski, K., Austin, C. , & Borgatta, E. ( 1987). Determinants of VA utilization: The 1983 Survey of Veterans . Medical Care, 25, 830-846.
11.
Litwak, E., & Longino, C. F., Jr. (1987) Migration patterns among the elderly: A developmental perspective. The Gerontologist , 25, 266-272.
12.
Longino, C. F., Jr. (1979). Going home: Aged return migration in the United States, 1965-1970. Journal of Gerontology, 34, 736-745.
13.
Longino, C. F., Jr. (1985). Returning from the Sunbelt: Myths and realities of migratory patterns among the elderly. New York: Columbia University, Brookdale Institute on Aging and Adult Human Development.
14.
Longino, C. F., Jr., Jackson, D. J., Zimmerman, R. S., & Bradsher, J. E. (1991). The second move: Health and geographic mobility. Journal of Gerontology , 46, S218-S224.
15.
Longino, C. F., Jr., & Marshall, V. W. (1990). North American research on seasonal migration. Ageing and Society, 10, 229-235.
16.
McLeod, K. D., Parker, J. R., Serow, W. J., & Rives, N. W., Jr. (1984). Determinants of state-to-state flows of elderly migrants. Research on Aging, 6, 372-383.
17.
Monahan, D. J., & Greene, V L. (1982). The impact of seasonal population fluctuations on service delivery . The Gerontologist, 22, 160-163.
18.
Page, W. (1982). Why veterans choose Veterans Administration hospitalization: A multivariate model. Medical Care, 20, 308-320.
19.
Patrick, C. H. (1980). Health and migration of the elderly. Research on Aging, 2, 233-241.
20.
Randall, M., Kilpatrick, K., Pendergast, J., Jones, K., & Vogel, W. (1987). Differences in patient characteristics between Veterans Administration and community hospitals: Implications for VA planning. Medical Care, 25, 1099-1104.
21.
Romeis, J., Gillespie, K. , & Coe, R. (1988 ). Older veterans' future use of VA health care services. Medical Care, 26, 854-866.
22.
Schlesinger, M., Moran, A. , & Zangwill, L. ( 1984). Utilization of the VA by elder veterans: An empirical analysis. In T. Wetle & J. W. Rowe (Eds.), Older veterans: Linking VA and community resources (pp. 321-368). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
23.
Serow, W. J. (1978). Return migration of the elderly in the USA: 1955-60 and 1965-70. Journal of Gerontology, 33, 288-295.
24.
Serow, W. J. (1987). Determinants of interstate migration: Differences between elderly and nonelderly movers . Journal of Gerontology, 42, 95-100.
25.
Serow, W. J., Charity, D. A., Fournier, G. M., & Rasmussen, D. W. (1986). Cost of living differentials and elderly interstate migration. Research on Aging, 8, 317-327.
26.
Speare, A., Jr., Avery, R. , & Lawton, L. ( 1991 ). Disability, residential mobility, and changes in living arrangements. Journal of Gerontology, 46, S133-S142.
27.
Speare, A., Jr., & Meyer, J. W. (1988). Types of elderly residential mobility and their determinants. Journal of Gerontology, 43, S74-S81.
28.
Sullivan, D. A., & Stevens, S. A. (1982). Snowbirds: Seasonal migrants to the Sunbelt. Research on Aging, 4, 159-177.
29.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. (1991 ). Annual Report of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (fiscal year 1990. Washington, DC.
30.
Wiseman, R. F. (1980). Why older people move: Theoretical issues. Research on Aging, 2, 141-154.
31.
Wolinsky, F., Coe, R., Mosely, R., & Homan, S. (1985). Veterans' and nonveterans' use of health services: A comparative analysis. Medical Care, 23, 1358-1371.
32.
Yee, W., & van Arsdol, M. (1977). Residential mobility, age, and the life cycle. Journal of Gerontology, 32, 211-221.
