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Most Kentuckians think next generation will be ‘worse off financially’

40 percent say next generation will be less healthy

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Jan. 23, 2013) — Six in 10 Kentucky adults think the next generation will be worse off financially than the current generation, according to the Kentucky Health Issues Poll (KHIP).

American flagMore than half (54 percent) indicated that their parents’ generation was better off financially than the current generation.

“It is a cornerstone of the American Dream that, if we work hard, we will get ahead and be better off than our parents were,” said Dr. Susan Zepeda, president/CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. “Our polling suggests that optimism for a better future may be slipping away.”

The KHIP also addressed health comparisons between generations. Four in 10 (40 percent) respondents said their children’s generation will be less healthy than the current generation of working-age Kentuckians. About the same number, 42 percent, reported their parents’ generation was healthier than the current generation of Kentuckians.

“Policy makers in Kentucky and Washington are grappling with economic and health policy issues that have long term impacts,” Zepeda said. “Our polling clearly indicates the concern Kentuckians have, on the need to do better for our kids.”

KHIP results for the “American Dream” questions include:

Economic situation — parents’ generation was ….

♦ 54 percent better off

♦ 27 percent about the same

♦ 16 percent worse off

Economic situation — next generation will be …

♦ 15 percent better off

♦ 21 percent about the same

♦ 61 percent worse off

Health comparisons — parents’ generation was …

♦ 42 percent healthier

♦ 31 percent about the same

♦ 27 percent less healthy

Health comparisons — next generation will be …

♦ 27 percent healthier

♦ 30 percent about the same

♦ 40 percent less healthy

The KHIP was funded by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky and the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati. The poll was conducted Sept. 20 through Oct. 14 by the Institute for Policy Research at the University of Cincinnati. A random sample of 1,680 adults from throughout Kentucky was interviewed by telephone, including landlines and cell phones. The poll has a margin of error of ±2.5 percent.