Today the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through its Administration for Community Living, released “Aging in the United States: A Strategic Framework for a National Plan on Aging.” The report 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 Profile of Older Americans is a summary of the available statistics related to the older population in the United States. Principal sources of data are the U.S. Census Bureau, the National Center for Health Statistics, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

At least one-third of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) also have a mental health disability. I am proud to be one of them and to be able to work on programs at the Administration for Community Living (ACL) that facilitate our meaningful engagement in the community. As is true for all people with mental health disabilities, treatment and supports that are personalized to our needs, values, and goals, and which respect and uphold our right to make decisions about our lives, are crucial to our community participation and to our health.

In this Policy Round-Up:

Have you ever tried to make an important call only to realize your phone battery is too low? What if you needed to call 911 to get help? Keeping our rechargeable devices powered up can be an important part of staying safe and healthy. The same is true of people and communities. Keeping them powered up through connection helps us stay at our best.

In this webinar, leaders from the HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will provide an overview of the rule’s critical provisions for the disability and aging networks.

The ACL-funded Center on Youth Voice, Youth Choice (CYVYC) alternatives to guardianship youth resource center at the Institute for Community Inclusion (ICI) at UMass Boston is hosting the second session in their four-part speaker series for educators.

During the webinar, the panel will discuss how people with disabilities and their families can access tools for financial education through centers for independent living (CILs). The panel will also share how state agencies, Hispanic and Latino community organizations, and the local Association of People Supporting Employment First (APSE) chapter in Colorado partnered on benefits counseling outreach to help maximize community inclusion and independent living for people with disabilities.

The Older Veteran Behavioral Health Resource Inventory, released by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), provides information on resources to help health and social service professionals support older veterans and other older adults who have or are at risk for behavioral health conditions.

Collectively, these grantees are expected to reach approximately 7,000 older adults and adults with disabilities in the next four years. A key focus of this initiative is engaging underserved populations, including rural, low income, and/or Spanish-speaking older adults, and/or older adults who are blind or vision impaired. Grantees will reach participants through innovative remote and in-person delivery and work with diverse partners, including emergency response services, health care systems, and aging network organizations.