Improving the quality of assisted living communities and nursing facilities, and increasing affordability and expanding coverage of long-term services and supports, are among the opportunities a National Plan on Aging can address, according to Justice in Aging.
The national advocacy organization released an issue brief on Tuesday outlining how the federal government can expand on the Strategic Framework for a National Plan on Aging, released in May by the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Healthy Aging and Age-Friendly Communities, to help everyone thrive as they grow older.
“All of us are aging, and all of us have a stake in how older adults live and thrive in our families and communities,” the report authors wrote.
The Justice in Aging brief examined the four domains listed in the strategic framework for a National Plan on Aging: coordinated housing and supportive services, increased access to long-term services and supports, aligned healthcare and supportive services, and age-friendly communities.
Increasing LTSS access, affordability
Under the LTSS domain, Justice in Aging identified one of the “opportunities for impact” as improving the quality of assisted living communities and nursing homes.
The organization also advocated for a system that considers both paid and unpaid caregivers as essential to aging with dignity. And Justice in Aging said it sees opportunities in increasing affordability of LTSS and expanding coverage and expanding access to Medicaid home- and community-based services.
Increasing Medicaid financial eligibility limits would make LTSS more affordable and accessible, according to the report. The authors pointed to research showing that increasing Medicaid financial eligibility would particularly benefit older adults of color who have lower incomes and resources.
The organization also advocates for expanding and streamlining Medicaid and Medicare programs to make it easier for older adults to qualify for and access LTSS. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that older adults of color, LGBTQ+ older adults, older adults with disabilities and those with limited English proficiency face the most barriers and are most reliant on Medicare, Medicaid and other public programs, according to the report.
Opportunities, according to the organization, lie in expanding eligibility for Medicare and Medicaid for low-income older adults, improving care delivery for dual eligibles, and reducing inequities in healthcare by streamlining rules and addressing discrimination.
“Creating a national plan on aging is an opportunity to ensure that programs and services are available, accessible and coordinated for all older adults,” according to the brief. “If we create an inclusive plan, we can build a world where our experiences aging in this country are not fraught with barriers, discrimination and invisibility, but rather are filled with recognition, dignity and celebration.”
Promoting affordable housing
The Justice in Aging report also calls for investing in affordable, accessible housing for older adults, whom the group says are “at the epicenter of the national housing affordability and homelessness crisis.” Almost one in three older renter households are “house burdened,” spending more than half of their monthly income on rent.
Increasing access to affordable, accessible housing can be achieved through legislative measures that increase investments in federal programs serving older adults at risk of or experiencing homelessness, while also addressing systemic housing discrimination, according to the report.
The AARP also released a white paper this summer laying out a blueprint for developing a National Plan on Aging.
