Many countries have an aging population, which apply pressure on pension and healthcare systems. Governments face some problems such as lack of workforce and medical services. To tackle these issues governments can use the short-term and the long-term solutions.
Firstly, the fact that workforce is the main source of income for governments should be mentioned. Older people do not profit the governments’ budget, conversely, they take money as a pension from there. Hence, adults, who considered as workforce members, need to overwork to support the economy and the budget of the country. For example, in South Korea government provides only 3-month vacation for women after giving a birth, because if the vacation will last for a longer time, for the government it will have negative consequences. Moreover, older people tend to have more health issues due to their age, so healthcare system will be affected too.
To solve these issues many measures can be applied. Government can increase the retirement age. It will increase the workforce and reduce the number of individuals, who get pension. This is a short-term solution, which will work immediately. To avoid these problems in the future, governments usually take long-term approach, such as increasing the birth rate. In Japan, leaders are promoting family values and trying to change the priorities, to encourage individuals to create families with children. The rise in number of newborns will provide more workforce in 20-30 years. Furthermore, healthy lifestyle propaganda will help to reduce the pressure put on healthcare system
Summing all this up, an aging population can be problematic trend in some countries, however it is not a no-solution issue. Many approaches can be taken to tackle the problem today and avoid it in the future.