Tag Archives: support

Older Americans Act expires Sept. 30 – will Congress act in time?

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About Liz Seegert

Liz Seegert (@lseegert), is AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. Her work has appeared in NextAvenue.com, Journal of Active Aging, Cancer Today, Kaiser Health News and other outlets. She is a senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy and Media Engagement at George Washington University and co-produces the HealthCetera podcast.

Photo: Bodo Tasche via Flickr

The Older Americans Act (OAA) expires on Sept. 30, 2019, and there’s still no bill ready for either a House or Senate vote. Traditionally, this legislation receives wide bipartisan support, but legislators are still attempting to work out some differences between what the Trump administration wants and provisions Democrats and advocacy groups would like to add.

The Senate is at an impasse regarding funding authorization levels and the funding formula, including “hold harmless” provisions. The House Education and Labor Committee announced on Friday that their OAA bill will be introduced on Monday and the committee will mark it up and likely pass it on Wednesday. Continue reading →

Latest scorecard of long-term services says improvement still slower than needed

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About Liz Seegert

Liz Seegert (@lseegert), is AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. Her work has appeared in NextAvenue.com, Journal of Active Aging, Cancer Today, Kaiser Health News and other outlets. She is a senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy and Media Engagement at George Washington University and co-produces the HealthCetera podcast.

Photo: Steve Baker via Flickr

When it comes to access to long-term supports and services (LTSS) for older or disabled Americans, where you live matters.

Washington edged out Minnesota this year as the best state for supporting older adults and family caregivers, according to the 2017 Long-Term Services and Supports State Scorecard. The state ranks highest for affordability and access, and choice of provider. Even so, Washington – like every state on the list – has room to improve. Continue reading →

New AARP report looks at onus on spousal caregivers

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About Liz Seegert

Liz Seegert (@lseegert), is AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. Her work has appeared in NextAvenue.com, Journal of Active Aging, Cancer Today, Kaiser Health News and other outlets. She is a senior fellow at the Center for Health Policy and Media Engagement at George Washington University and co-produces the HealthCetera podcast.

Image by Tammy Strobel via flickr.

Image by Tammy Strobel via flickr.

A new report from the The United Hospital Fund and AARP Public Policy Institute finds that spouses who act as the primary family caregiver routinely perform complex medical and nursing tasks without adequate in-home support from health care professionals, especially when compared with non-spousal family caregivers.

Eighty-four percent of spousal care recipients received no professional health care on site, compared to 65 percent of non-spousal care recipients. Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of spouses who are caregivers perform many of the tasks that health care professionals do – such as medication management, wound care, using meters and monitors, compared to 42 percent of nonspousal caregivers.

Compounding the challenge, spouses were also less likely to receive help from family or friends or home care aides: 58 percent of the spouses reported no additional help from others, compared to 20 percent of nonspouses. Continue reading →