Complete list of organizations that provided feedback
This spring, the ICC released Aging in the United States: A Strategic Framework for a National Plan on Aging on behalf of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Healthy Aging and Age-Friendly Communities. The Strategic Framework lays the groundwork for a coordinated effort — across the private and public sectors and in partnership with older adults, family caregivers, the aging services network, and other stakeholders — to create a national set of recommendations for advancing healthy aging and age-friendly communities that value and truly include older adults. The national plan on aging will advance best practices for service delivery, support development and strengthening of partnerships within and across sectors, identify solutions for removing barriers to health and independence for older adults, and more.
Since May, the ICC — with significant support from the National Plan on Aging Community Engagement Collaborative (a partnership between West Health, The SCAN Foundation, and The John A. Hartford Foundation) — has focused on gathering feedback on the Strategic Framework and other input to ensure the national plan focuses on the most important issues and addresses them in a way that will meet the needs of older adults.
Input has been collected from a wide variety of people and organizations from communities across the country. Most importantly, we have heard from older adults from all walks of life. People have shared their thoughts through in-person and virtual events, a national poll conducted through Gallup, and an online portal.
The Administration for Community Living created this report to share what we have heard so far. It describes some of the common themes that are beginning to emerge from the experiences, insights, and recommendations that have been shared, with a goal of sparking ongoing discussion. It includes input on factors that influence the aging experience, such as affordable and accessible housing, aligned health care and supportive services, accessible communities, age-friendly workplaces, and sufficient, high-quality long-term services and supports.
This report is a snapshot in time — and it is only the beginning. We are continuing to receive comments through an online portal, and we are continuing to create opportunities for people to tell us what they believe are the greatest needs and the actions they think would help address them.