West Health applauds this week’s passage of legislation reauthorizing the Older Americans Act (OAA), which provides critical funding for programs and services that combat malnutrition, elder abuse and social isolation, support family caregivers and senior centers, and help older adults with transportation, legal issues and in-home and community-based care. The reauthorization of OAA is a victory for the health, well-being and dignity of millions of seniors and their families, and successful aging in America.
Its passage comes at a time when older adults and all Americans are grappling with an unprecedented health crisis from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The OAA should help protect seniors during this difficult time and beyond. “The community-based, creative work of the aging networks supported by the Older Americans Act is a model for supporting vulnerable Americans,” Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said in a statement after President Trump signed the OAA into law.
Solely funded by philanthropists Gary and Mary West, West Health is a family of nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations including the Gary and Mary West Health Institute and Gary and Mary West Foundation in San Diego and the Gary and Mary West Health Policy Center in Washington, DC. Our organizations work together toward a shared mission dedicated to lowering healthcare costs to enable seniors to successfully age in place with access to high-quality, affordable health and support services that preserve and protect their dignity, quality of life and independence. Learn more at www.westhealth.org and follow @westhealth.