Healthy Aging in Asia

How are health systems in Asia promoting evidence-based policies for healthy aging?

Life expectancy in Japan, South Korea, and urban China has now outpaced that of the United States. With this demographic shift, however, comes a rise in the incidence of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes and hypertension, a trend that reduces the healthy life years of individuals, as well as the ability of nations to sustainably finance their healthcare systems.

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the vulnerability to newly emerging pathogens of older adults suffering from NCDs, and the importance of building long-term, resilient health systems. What strategies have been tried to prevent NCDs--the primary cause of morbidity and mortality--as well as to screen for early detection, raise quality of care, improve medication adherence, reduce unnecessary hospitalizations and increase "value for money" in health spending?

Fourteen concise chapters cover multiple aspects of policy initiatives for healthy aging and economic research on diabetes and hypertension control in health systems as diverse as cities such as Singapore and Hong Kong to large economies such as Japan, India, China.