February 18, 2004

“KEEP SENIORS STANDING” Campaign
SUPPORT INTRO. 58: PREVENT ELDERLY FALLS

• Falls are the leading cause of unintentional injury death for people aged 65 and older.

• Falls account for 87% of all fractures for people 65 and older and is the most common cause of injuries and hospital admissions for trauma. 

• 25% of elderly who sustain a hip fracture will die within one year.

• Women sustain 75%-80% of all hip fractures. 

• Of all fall deaths, more than 60% involve people who are 75 years or older.

• People over 85 are 10-15 times more likely to have a hip fracture than people between 60 and 65.

• Private residences pose the greatest danger – 60% of all fatal falls occur in the home.

• In 1994, the total cast of all fall injuries for people aged 65 and older was $20.2 billion, with an average cost of $1,400. By 2020 the cost of fall related injuries is expected to exceed $32 billion.

• Hospital admissions for hip fractures among the elderly increased from 231,000 admissions in 1988 to 332,000 in 1999 and are expected to exceed 500,000 by the year 2040.

What you can do: 

Contact Dirk McCall at Councilman Alan Gerson’s office at (212) 788-7722 to sign on. 



For more information, please contact:
Bobbie Sackman, Director of Public Policy at (212) 398-6565 ext. 226 or at bsackman@cscs-ny.org or
Raquel Romanick, Esq., Legal Advocate at (212) 398-6565 ext. 229 or at rromanick@cscs-ny.org.

PLEASE JOIN US IN SUPPORTING INTRO. 58 
KEEP SENIORS STANDING!