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Series:   Elements in Public Economics

The Public Economics of Changing Longevity

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 January 2022

Pierre Pestieau
Pierre Pestieau
Affiliation:
HEC, Université de Liège and CORE, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium

Summary

Our societies are witnessing a steady increase in longevity. This demographic evolution is accompanied by some convergence across countries, but at the same time substantial longevity inequalities persist within nations across income classes. This Element aims to survey some crucial implications of changing longevity on the design of optimal public policy. For that purpose, it first focuses on some difficulties raised by risky and varying lifetime for the representation of individual and social preferences. Then, it explore some central implications of changing longevity for optimal policy making, regarding prevention against premature death, pension policies, education, health care and long-term care. The author distinguishes between the case when longevity is partially the responsibility of individuals and the case when longevity is plainly exogenous.
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Keywords

longevityoptimal public policyagingendogenous longevitylife expectancy
Type
Element
Information
Series: Elements in Public Economics
Online ISBN: 9781009170864
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication: 10 February 2022

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The Public Economics of Changing Longevity
  • Pierre Pestieau, HEC, Université de Liège and CORE, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium
  • Online ISBN: 9781009170864
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The Public Economics of Changing Longevity
  • Pierre Pestieau, HEC, Université de Liège and CORE, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium
  • Online ISBN: 9781009170864
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The Public Economics of Changing Longevity
  • Pierre Pestieau, HEC, Université de Liège and CORE, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium
  • Online ISBN: 9781009170864
Available formats
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