In the next four years, the number of doctors, nurses, and other health care workers will increase significantly worldwide. Even so, the average compensation received by such professional will not decline but rather is likely to increase. This is due, at least partly, to the fact that the median age of the world’s population will increase steadily in this same period of time.

The argument above depends logically upon which of the following assumptions?

(A) The increase in the number of health care workers will be responsible for the increase in the average life span
(B) The compensation of doctors and physical therapists who treat the elderly will increase more than that of other health care workers
(C) As a group, older people receive more attention from health care workers than do younger people.
(D) Geriatrics, a branch of medicine focusing on the health problems of older people, is the most expensive element of American health care.
(E) Increase in the median age of the population will occur in all regions of the world.

I arrive at E via POE

A, C and D ----- out of scope
B is wrong beacuse the salary of other healthcare workers is also going to go up as per the passage

However, I do not have an explanation as to why E is correct as it is already mentioned in the passage.

I think it's C because total demand for health care is higher-> higher salaries

median age increases because the number of older people increase. The total health cost will increase with this trend only if the cost of healthcare for old people will increase. So, C should be the right answer.

E - doesn't necessarily need to be true. Even if not all regions see this trend, the average salary of doctors can still go up.

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Its Now Or Never

I agree. Sorry for the goof up.

OA is C

Explanation (I don't fully understand):
Since the number of healthcare workers are on the rise along w/ the average compensation, the answer is supported by the rise in the number of elderly people. More workers will get more money, so it is assumed that the elderly are especially likely to require services of healthcare workers.

anyone that got the correct answer have a better explanation?

I chose C.

B. The compensation of doctors and physical therapists who treat the elderly will incrase more than that of other health care workers

The reason I don't like this answer is because we cannot really assume that doctors and physical therapists compensation > healthcare workers. If physical therapists and healthcare workers compensation > doctors, the average compensation is still going up.

I feel that the way this answer is worded is very limiting.

The assumption seems to be that the doctors who work with older patients will earn an increasing amount of money, thus raising the average earnings per doctor despite there being more doctors. But (B), (C), and (D) all seem to speak to this fact, and I couldn't really determine between them.

(B) The compensation of doctors and physical therapists who treat the elderly will increase more than that of other health care workers

Seems like exactly what I was looking for, and this is the answer I picked.

(C) As a group, older people receive more attention from health care workers than do younger people.

As the median age goes up, the doctors who work primarily with older people will get more business -> make more money -> increase the average. Seems to fit as well (and apparently is the OA)

(D) Geriatrics, a branch of medicine focusing on the health problems of older people, is the most expensive element of American health care.

More older people means there are more people who need to pay for geriatrics, which is the most expensive element -> the doctors who specialize in geriatrics will earn an increasing wage, improving the average. I think the key to this one is that it specifies AMERICAN health care, while the original argument was WORLDWIDE.

But why is (C) better than (B)? They both seem like perfectly legit answers.