Providers Applaud Long-Awaited Update to Older Americans Act Programs

McKnight’s Home Care / By Adam Healy
 
After a decades-long wait, home care providers will soon be able to take advantage of new senior care resources made available by sweeping updates to the Older Americans Act.
“Bold investments in the OAA infrastructure and the services supported by it are essential,” Katie Smith Sloan, president and chief executive officer of LeadingAge, said in a letter to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) on March 21. “We are already desperately behind in prioritizing the needs of our aging population.”
 
In February, the Administration for Community Living finalized a rule to modernize the OAA — the first major change made to the legislation in more than 35 years, according to the ACL. Among its provisions, the rule made permanent various flexibilities instituted during the COVID-19 pandemic, including carry-out meals for seniors. The rule’s main priority, according to ACL, is to help seniors receive enough support to age comfortably at home and in their communities…

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