Older Adults Technology Gap Persists Despite Gains: Broadband Breakfast Panelists
One panelist called the broadband gap among older Americans a national crisis
WASHINGTON, April 29, 2026 – Roughly one in three Americans over 65 still lacks a wireline broadband connection at home, panelists said during a Broadband Breakfast Live Online discussion on the role of technology in helping older adults age in place.
While the disconnection rate has dropped from 42% five years ago to 32% today, the remaining gap represents what one panelist called a national crisis requiring coordinated action from nonprofits, governments and industry.
Thomas Kamber, executive director of Older Adults Technology Services, which runs the Senior Planet program at AARP, said the figure "constitutes a crisis" given that broadband participation among 18- to 64-year-olds runs 12 to 15 percentage points higher depending on the state. Kamber's organization has grown from a Brooklyn kitchen-table operation 21 years ago into a national network with more than 760 partner sites across 42 states.
Thomas Kamber
