Advocacy
Get Loud About the Older Americans Act!
By Maddy Bynes , PCOA Director of Public Policy & Special Projects It’s that time of year again! In March, President Biden released his budget – a step that kicks off the entire federal appropriations process. As he did last year, he proposed bold increases for the Older Americans Act. Included in the proposed increases are: • 25% increase in Title III B supportive services funding for older adults • 31% increase in Title IIIC nutrition funding for home delivered meals and congregate community lunch programs • 6% increase in Title IIID evidence- based disease prevention programming • 29% increase in Title IIIE family caregiver support programs • Nearly 50% increase in Title VII which is home to the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program These proposed investments are critical to addressing the complex needs older adults face here in Pima County. Over the past two years, PCOA and our partners around the state and nation, have been extremely grateful and fortunate to have the funding to address the needs of older adults in the face of COVID-19. This funding has allowed us to be nimble and to serve older adults throughout the pandemic. As we move to thinking about COVID-19 being a part of our every day lives, we need to shift our focus on how to
address the needs of older adults in our community. These programs and services were historically under resourced, even prior to the pandemic. This proposal introduces historic, long-term investments into the Older Americans Act to allow us to respond to complex needs of older adults in our community. We need your help. Help reach out to your Members of Congress to urge their support of President Biden’s historic investments into the Older Americans Act. Help us continue to provide quality care to older adults and those who love them, allowing us to keep older people safe in their own homes and communities. Visit advocate.pcoa.org to take action today! PCOA Hits the Streets of DC! In March, President & CEO, W. Mark Clark, and Director of Public Policy & Special Projects, Maddy Bynes, visited Washington D.C. to meet with members of Congress to highlight the needs of older adults in our community. Clark and Bynes met with Members of Congress and their staff to discuss the much-needed federal investments in the Older Americans Act. Though our staff always love being in Washington D.C. to advocate on behalf of older adults in our community, their voices alone won’t due. We need your help to amplify the message of much needed investments into the Older Americans Act! Visit advocate.pcoa.org to amplify Mark’s and Maddy’s message today! Don’t Forget About the Legislature As we enter May and the beginning of our federal appropriations season, it is easy to forget that the Arizona State Legislature
remains in session and working on our top priorities. In February, the Aging Network had bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate to pass continued funding for home and community-based services. Though both HB 2528 and SB 1536 passed out of the House and the Senate by a bipartisan majority vote, we still need your help in bringing the win home. Rather than going through the usual bill process, this funding priority will be saved for a negotiation on the State’s budget that typically happens at the end of the Legislative session. We need your continued advocacy at the state level to ensure that the Legislature appropriates $1.5 million of on-going funding to the Area Agencies on Aging. Visit advocate. pcoa.org and click take action today! Left to right: W. Mark Clark, President and CEO, PCOA; Gina Whittington, Director, WACOG AAA; Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick; Maddy Bynes, Director, Arizona Association of Area Agencies on Aging; Mary Beals Luedtka, Director, NACOG Aging; Carol Brown, Manager, WACOG AAA
May 2022, Never Too Late | Page 27
Pima Council on Aging
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