Argentum hosted an in-person briefing yesterday on Capitol Hill in partnership with the House 21st Century Long-Term Care Caucus on policy considerations for reauthorization of the Older Americans Act (OAA), which is due to expire in September.
The briefing offered an opportunity to educate legislative staff on the assisted living care model and how it differs from other long-term settings, to promote our recent report, The Value of Assisted Living in America, and to share our legislative priorities, including the SENIOR Act and the Care Across Generations Act, both of which have provisions that may be incorporated into reauthorization of the OAA.
First enacted in 1965 and last reauthorized in 2020, the OAA serves more than 10 million Americans each year through supportive services, congregate nutrition services (i.e., meals served at group sites such as senior centers, community centers, schools, churches, or senior housing complexes), home-delivered nutrition services, family caregiver support, the long-term care ombudsman program, and services to prevent the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of older persons provides supports and programs for seniors and caregivers.
The House 21st Century Long-Term Care Caucus was launched in 2022 by Representatives Annie Kuster (D-NH) and Bryan Steil (R-WI) as a bipartisan effort to identify and address long-term care issues and implement solutions to best serve older Americans and all who receive services. It is effectively a counterpart to the Senate Aging Committee and focuses on promoting legislation relating to LTC financing, affordability, and workforce shortages. Argentum worked directly on the formation of the caucus and is working to grow its membership.