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Virgin Islands Legislative Issues Survey

AARP Member Opinion Research

by David Cicero, AARP Knowledge Management, Rachelle Cummins, M.A., AARP Knowledge Management, AARP Research, January, 2005

This mail survey of AARP members in the Virgin Islands explores their opinions about health care, long-term care, the VI Government Employees Retirement System and what they feel should be AARP's legislative priorities in their territory.

The top legislative priorities of AARP's VI members are the availability, cost and quality of health care; having access to affordable prescription drugs, and preventing elder abuse.

Of the 889 members filling out and returning the survey questionnaire…

  • 94 percent support making prescription drugs more affordable

  • 90 percent support improving access to preventative health care

  • 87 percent support increasing funding for public health care programs

  • 84 percent support improving health insurance coverage for the uninsured

  • 69 percent support increasing funding for long-term care services that enable people to stay in their own homes as they age, even if it means an increase in taxes

When asked about changes to the Government Employees Retirement System…

  • 79 percent support providing an annually updated handbook on GERS benefits and procedures

  • 76 percent support using GERS funds only for retirement benefits and necessary administrative expenses and having a retiree and government employee representative on the GERS board

  • 70 percent support prohibiting retired government employees from returning to government employment while continuing to collect full retirement benefits

  • 42 percent support changing divorce laws so that pension and benefits under GERS are considered marital property that can be distributed

The survey was conducted during November and December 2003. Participants, proportionally stratified by three age segments (50 to 59, 60 to 74, and 75+), were randomly selected from AARP's membership database.

Survey results are presented in two sections:

  • Executive Summary of the overall findings by Rachelle Cummins and David Cicero, both of AARP Knowledge Management
  • (PDF, 22 pages)
  • Special Report about the GERS questions by Rachelle Cummins who may be contacted at 202-434-6297 for further information about both subjects.
  • (PDF, 8 pages)