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Washington, DC – Today, Representatives Debbie Dingell (D-MI-12), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12), and Lois Frankel (D-FL-21) introduced the Protecting the Health of America’s Older Adults Act. This bipartisan legislation would create a program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to improve the health and well-being of older adults and provide grants to state and local health departments to implement age-friendly public health programs.

“The number of Americans ages 65 and older will more than double over the next 40 years. We have the power to prepare for this through strategic legislation that supports critical resources for older Americans,” said Rep. Dingell. “I’m proud to work with my colleague Rep. Lois Frankel to introduce the Protecting the Health of America’s Older Adults Act to create a Healthy Aging program at the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention. From lowering health care costs to improving health equity, this program will be a lifeline to the American people as they age.”

“We owe it to our seniors to ensure they have access to the best possible health care,” said Rep. Bilirakis. “As the population continues to age, it only makes sense that public health officials are working closely with senior advocacy organizations to identify and address unmet needs.”

“As people age, they face unique health challenges including dementia, food insecurity, balance, and isolation,” said Rep. Frankel. “This bipartisan legislation will provide the CDC and state and local health departments with resources to address these, and other critical health issues older Americans confront every day.”

“The last year underscored how important it is for public health agencies to be at the table when it comes to promoting the health of older adults,” said Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, President and CEO of Trust for America’s Health. “While health departments have been critical to the COVID-19 pandemic response when it comes to older adults, their active engagement in addressing many other issues faced by the aging population across the public health spectrum, including transportation and housing access, chronic disease, and mental health, will promote better aging outcomes and benefit our entire society. This new grant program would be a step in the right direction to ensure that state and local health departments have the resources to do exactly that.” 

This CDC program would provide grants and technical assistance to state, local, territorial, and tribal health departments for:

·        Improving the coordination of public health interventions that improve the health and well-being of older adults;

·        Disseminating and implementing evidence-based best practices and programs with respect to promoting the health and well-being of older adults;

·        Coordinating multisectoral efforts to improve the health and well-being of older adults across governmental and nongovernmental health agencies;

·        Improving coordination of interventions to identify gaps and reduce duplication of efforts at federal, local, and state agencies and with other aging services organizations.

The Protecting the Health of Older America’s Adults Act has been endorsed by The Florida Public Health Association, Trust for America’s Health, Alliance for Aging Research, Society for Women’s Health Research, American Association on Health and Disability, American Public Health Association, Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, Society for Public Health Education, Coalition of National Health Education Organizations, Association of State Public Health Nutritionists, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly (CARIE), National Network of Public Health Institutes, Society for Public Health Education, Florida Introduces Physical Activity and Nutrition to the Youth, National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services Programs, Gerontological Partnership of America, Common Threads, Urban Health Partnerships, We All Rise, and more.

Full text of the legislation can be found here.

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