WASHINGTON -- A new report says the nation's health care system discriminates against the elderly.

The report, by the nonprofit Alliance for Aging Research, was presented to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging. It says older people are often excluded from clinical tests for drugs and are less likely to receive preventive care.

The report also says that medical schools pay scant attention to training geriatricians, so there aren't enough doctors to deal with the special needs of older Americans.

Daniel Perry, the group's executive director, told the Senate committee that "ageism is a deep and often unconscious prejudice against the old." He said that attitude permeates American culture.

"Like other patterns of bias -- such as racism and sexism -- these attitudes diminish us all, but they can be downright deadly to older people in receiving healthcare," Perry said.

Only about 10 percent of U.S. medical schools require course work or rotations in geriatric medicine. Fewer than 3 percent of medical school graduates take elective courses in geriatrics.

Additional Resources:

• Full Report
• Senate Special Committee on Aging