Mexicans are the largest immigrant group in the United States of America (USA) and are ageing rapidly. Few studies investigate whether older immigrants return to Mexico for different reasons than younger immigrants. Using the Mexican Health and Aging Study (N = 952), we examine whether Mexican immigrants in the USA who returned to Mexico at age 50 and older report different reasons for returning than those who returned at younger ages. Few immigrants (regardless of age) returned for economic reasons. The most commonly reported reason for returning for both groups was missing family. However, the odds of selecting missing family over illness as their main reason for returning were lower for older immigrants than younger immigrants after controlling for the duration of their stay in the USA and other socio-demographic factors (odds ratio (OR) = 0.27; 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.11, 0.68). Results indicate that older immigrants were just as likely to report returning due to economic reasons and migration problems as they were to report returning because of illness (OR = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.15, 2.21; OR = 0.41, 95% CI = 0.12, 1.43). While existing research shows that older immigrants in the USA typically experience fewer migration problems and are often more economically stable than younger immigrants, our research suggests this may be entirely due to the duration of their stay in the USA.

International migration has long been considered the preserve of working-age adults. However, the rapid diversification of the elderly population calls for increased attention to the migration patterns of this group and its possible motivations. This study examines whether Latin American immigrants who are primary Social Security beneficiaries are more likely to return to their home countries during later life if they receive lower Social Security benefits. Using a regression discontinuity approach on restricted data from the U.S. Social Security Administration (N=1,515), this study presents the results of a natural experiment whereby the Social Security Administration unexpectedly lowered the Social Security benefits of the 1917-1921 birth cohorts due to a miscalculation in the benefit-calculation formula. Results suggest that approximately 10% of primary Social Security beneficiaries from Latin America born close to these dates return migrated, the probability of which was not affected by Social Security benefit levels.

Older adults comprise an increasing share of new legal admits to the U.S. While many are financially dependent on their families, a more complete picture requires taking into account the non-monetary contributions of this population. Using the American Time Use Survey (ATUS), this study examines whether older recent immigrant women provide more unpaid childcare than their native-born and more established immigrant counterparts. Results suggest that while older recent immigrant women are more likely to provide unpaid childcare, this effect is eliminated upon controlling for demographic characteristics. However, among those who do provide childcare, older recent immigrant women provide more hours of care even after controlling for demographic and household characteristics. This pattern holds up even after restricting the analysis to women living with young children. These results may signal reciprocal supportive networks. Working-age adults may financially support older recent immigrants while older recent immigrants provide unremunerated childcare for working-age adults.

Background Empirical research describes retirement migration to Mexico as a viable option for some older Americans. However, far less research examines this phenomenon among Mexican immigrants in the United States. The literature that does address this topic treats international migration as a singular occurrence and does not examine the possibility of return and subsequent reentry between countries. This omission creates an important gap in our knowledge of international retirement migration considering the strong transnational ties that Mexican immigrants maintain to the home and destination countries. Objective Using a multistate life table approach, this study examines the rate of return to Mexico and reentry back into the United States among Mexican males aged 50 and older with U.S. migration experience, as well as the number of years spent in both countries. Results Results show that the rate of reentry from Mexico into the United States declined from 3.33% at age 50-54 to less than 1% at age 70 and older (p-value<0.05). In contrast, the rate of return to Mexico from the United States increased from 3.19% at age 50 to 54 to 4.44%at age 65 to 69 and dropped to less than 2% at age 70 and older (p-value<0.05). Conclusions While rates of return and reentry among this population are relatively low, they provide insight on the potential life course factors driving the migration patterns of a population of increasing size and relevance in the United States.

The population of older adults in the United States is increasing in both size and racial and ethnic diversity. Research examining racial and ethnic disparities in care among older adults is essential to providing better quality care and improving patient outcomes. Yet, in the current climate of limited research funding, what efficient methods exist for gerontological nurse researchers to address these important health care issues among racially and ethnically diverse groups, groups typically underrepresented and difficult to access in research? We suggest data sciencea rigorous, interdisciplinary philosophy and method to acquire, manage, explore, and interpret large data setsusing existing clinical and population data (Brennan & Bakken, 2015). Clinical data sets provide insight into health trajectories across care settings and transitions. Examples such as electronic health records, the Minimum Data Set (MDS; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services [CMS], 2012a) from nursing homes, or the Outcomes Assessment Information Set (OASIS; CMS, 2012b) from home health, typically house information on thousands of patients across the country. Gerontological nurse researchers may consider partnering with health care agencies to sample from these larger clinical data sets to address research questions on differences in care practices, symptom science, and patient-centered outcomes across racially and ethnically diverse older adult populations. In addition, clinical data sets may contain information on health services and access to care. For example, data from the MDS and OASIS may be linked to the CMS claims data to address local and national level health services research questions. Costs to access clinical data sets may vary depending on the system level of data (e.g., local hospital data versus national Medicare data). Population data sets also offer ample opportunity to study diverse racial and ethnic groups. These data often