The hearing's purpose was to begin building a record, from a national perspective, regarding older Americans who live in smaller towns and rural areas. It is not fully known what the real impact is of such matters as lack of transportation, nutritional deficiencies, distance to and shortage of health care, non-availability of adult education opportunities, inequalities in social security benefits for farmers (particularly farm wives), etc. In 1970 there were 125 counties in the nation with one-sixth or more of their population aged 65 or over. By 1978 that number had risen to 500. Although a large percentage of rural elderly are located in the midwest and south, recent migrations of older Americans have moved them to the Sun Belt and other areas. Much of this migration is caused by older Americans returning from urban to rural areas for reasons of preferred environment and safety. Although availability of 1980 census data may supply some answers in numbers, still little is known about the people those numbers represent. There is much research to be done and programs that could be continued or initiated. For example, does high technology hold potential for uniting health needs with health answers? Three appendixes conclude the document. (BRR)