The Older Americans Act

The Older Americans Act
Author: United States. Congress. House. Committee on Education and Labor. Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities
Publisher:
Total Pages: 48
Release: 2006
Genre: Law
ISBN:

Families Caring for an Aging America

Families Caring for an Aging America
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 367
Release: 2016-11-08
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309448093

Family caregiving affects millions of Americans every day, in all walks of life. At least 17.7 million individuals in the United States are caregivers of an older adult with a health or functional limitation. The nation's family caregivers provide the lion's share of long-term care for our older adult population. They are also central to older adults' access to and receipt of health care and community-based social services. Yet the need to recognize and support caregivers is among the least appreciated challenges facing the aging U.S. population. Families Caring for an Aging America examines the prevalence and nature of family caregiving of older adults and the available evidence on the effectiveness of programs, supports, and other interventions designed to support family caregivers. This report also assesses and recommends policies to address the needs of family caregivers and to minimize the barriers that they encounter in trying to meet the needs of older adults.

The Mental Health and Substance Use Workforce for Older Adults

The Mental Health and Substance Use Workforce for Older Adults
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 396
Release: 2012-10-26
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309256658

At least 5.6 million to 8 million-nearly one in five-older adults in America have one or more mental health and substance use conditions, which present unique challenges for their care. With the number of adults age 65 and older projected to soar from 40.3 million in 2010 to 72.1 million by 2030, the aging of America holds profound consequences for the nation. For decades, policymakers have been warned that the nation's health care workforce is ill-equipped to care for a rapidly growing and increasingly diverse population. In the specific disciplines of mental health and substance use, there have been similar warnings about serious workforce shortages, insufficient workforce diversity, and lack of basic competence and core knowledge in key areas. Following its 2008 report highlighting the urgency of expanding and strengthening the geriatric health care workforce, the IOM was asked by the Department of Health and Human Services to undertake a complementary study on the geriatric mental health and substance use workforce. The Mental Health and Substance Use Workforce for Older Adults: In Whose Hands? assesses the needs of this population and the workforce that serves it. The breadth and magnitude of inadequate workforce training and personnel shortages have grown to such proportions, says the committee, that no single approach, nor a few isolated changes in disparate federal agencies or programs, can adequately address the issue. Overcoming these challenges will require focused and coordinated action by all.

Funding for the Older Americans Act and Other Aging Services Programs

Funding for the Older Americans Act and Other Aging Services Programs
Author: Angela Napili
Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub
Total Pages: 46
Release: 2013-03-13
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9781482762464

The Older Americans Act (OAA) is the major federal vehicle for the delivery of social and nutrition services for older persons. These include supportive services, congregate nutrition services (meals served at group sites such as senior centers, schools, churches, or senior housing complexes), home-delivered nutrition services, family caregiver support, community service employment, the long-term care ombudsman program, and services to prevent the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of older persons. The OAA also supports grants to older Native Americans and research, training, and demonstration activities. The Administration on Aging (AOA) in the newly established Administration for Community Living (ACL), within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) administers most OAA programs. The exception is the Community Service Employment for Older Americans (CSEOA) program, which is administered by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The ACL also administers several aging services programs authorized under the Public Health Service Act, such as the Alzheimer's Disease Supportive Services Program and the Lifespan Respite Care Program. Funding for OAA programs and other aging services is provided through appropriations legislation for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS-Education). FY2012 funding for OAA programs totals $1.913 billion, 1% less than in FY2011. The President's FY2013 budget request proposes $1.907 billion for OAA programs, 0.3% less than the FY2012 level. The President's budget proposal would eliminate $6.5 million in discretionary OAA funding for Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRCs) also funded by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148, as amended). The Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2013 (CR; P.L. 112-175) became law on September 28, 2012. For most discretionary programs, including OAA programs, the CR continues funding at close to FY2012 levels. The CR provides funding for October 1, 2012, through March 27, 2013, although amounts may change depending on whether certain actions, such as sequestration, are taken pursuant to the Budget Control Act (P.L. 112-25) and the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA, P.L. 112-240). Since the enactment of OAA, Congress has reauthorized and amended the act numerous times. In the past, OAA reauthorization has included extending the act's authorization of appropriations for a five-year period. The last OAA reauthorization occurred in 2006, when Congress enacted the Older Americans Act Amendments of 2006 (P.L. 109-365), which extended the act's authorization of appropriations for FY2007 through FY2011. The authorization of appropriations for most OAA programs expired at the end of FY2011. However, Congress has continued to appropriate funding for OAA authorized activities. In the 112th Congress, comprehensive OAA reauthorization legislation was introduced which would extend the authorization of appropriations for most OAA programs through FY2017 and would make various amendments to existing OAA authorities. This report provides details of FY2011, FY2012, and FY2013 funding for OAA authorized activities, as well as for other aging services programs administered by ACL under other statutory authorities.