On Wednesday, U.S. Representative Bill Foster (D-IL) visited Heritage Woods of Batavia, a Gardant-managed affordable assisted living community in northeastern Illinois.

During the visit, they discussed several workforce issues, including staffing challenges, concerns with proposed CMS staffing mandates, and targeted immigration reform to bring in nurses from foreign countries. They also discussed the difficulty hospitals are having discharging patients because of the challenges of finding an available nursing home bed, and the Illinois Supportive Living program as a model for affordable assisted living, benefiting residents and their families and saving the federal and state governments money..

Lawmakers are in the midst of their annual August recess, meeting with constituents and holding community events back in their states and districts. We need your help to be part of these discussions and to tell the story of senior living!

To help more senior living communities join in our grassroots advocacy efforts to educate and inform lawmakers on the value of senior living and our policy solutions, Argentum prepared a toolkit on hosting lawmakers for community visits, so they can see first-hand daily life of residents and caregivers and better understand our challenges and the legislative solutions we have proposed.

Last week, U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (D-WA) visited the new Merrill Gardens community in the historic Wright Park neighborhood of Tacoma.

He was able to make direct connections with the residents and spent time with them during a question-and-answer period. Congressman Kilmer enjoyed a tour of the community and the spectacular view of commencement day from the rooftop garden. The Merrill Gardens Wright Park community thoroughly enjoyed the visit with the Congressman and is very appreciative of his willingness to spend time making this meaningful connection.

Help us tell our story and share the value of senior living with lawmakers:

• Download the toolkit on how to host lawmakers for visits at your community;
• Download a complimentary copy of the Value of Assisted Living for America report;
• Make a contribution to Silver PAC, the fund supported exclusively by senior living advocates, dedicated to helping foster relationships with key lawmakers and educate them on our issues.

On Monday, U.S. Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) visited Merrill Gardens at West Chester, located in her southeastern Pennsylvania Congressional district.

Rep. Houlahan's visit included a townhall forum with several residents, and offered an opportunity to discuss affordability issues, particularly for residents in memory care. They also discussed workforce issues, including barriers of transportation and child card, and constraints in Pennsylvania with regulations regarding education requirements for direct care workers. Rep. Houlahan was also asked for support of the Veterans assisted living pilot program, the forthcoming SENIOR Act, and the 21st Century Long-term Care Caucus.

Lawmakers are preparing to embark on a five week recess, meeting with constituents and holding community events back in their states and districts. We need your help to be part of these discussions and to tell the story of senior living!

U.S. Representative Robin Kelly (D-IL) visited Bowman Estates of Danville, a Gardant Management Solutions affordable assisted living community in Danville, Illinois.

Rep. Kelly had the opportunity to tour the community and talk with residents. They discussed the benefits of the Illinois Supportive Living program; the challenges of operating assisted living communities, especially staffing, the impact of inflation; and unrealistic rules being proposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid; and our support of legislation designed to expand veterans long-term care options.

Congresswoman Kelly represents the Eastern Illinois based 2nd District, and is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, including the Health subcommittee.

Last week, U.S. Representatives Tom Cole (R-OK) and Stephanie Bice (R-OK) visited communities in their respective Oklahoma City-based districts.

Representative Cole, who serves as Chairman of the House Rules Committee and Vice Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, visited Legend at Rivendell, a Legend Senior Living community located in southern Oklahoma City. During his visit, he met with residents and staff, including a resident who ran against him in an election for Congress many years ago! Congressman Cole was able to discuss his priorities, including efforts to secure funding for Alzheimer’s related initiatives, for which he has been a longtime champion.

Last week, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA) had an opportunity to visit Windsong of Sonoma, an Integral Senior Living community in his district.

The visit featured a townhall with residents and staff and occurred during the community's monthly staff recognition meeting, where he was able to present certificates to staff with 15+ years at Windsong. Representative Huffman, a member of the House 21st Century Long Term Care Caucus, discussed his legislative priorities relating to prescription drug prices and health care for Veterans, and participated in a question and answer session.

Lawmakers are currently on a recess for the July 4 holiday, meeting with constituents and holding community events back in their states and districts. We need your help to be part of these discussions and to tell the story of senior living!