The American Geriatrics Society - Policy - The Caring For An Aging America Act of 2008

The Caring For An Aging America Act of 2008

What is the Caring for an Aging American Act of 2008 (S.2708/H.R.6331)?
Why is the Caring for an Aging American Act of 2008 so important?
What is AGS' role in this legislation?
What is the current status of this legislation?
How many organizations have signed-on in support of this legislation?
What is AGS' position on Caring for an Aging American Act of 2008?

	Recent AGS News Coverage
	Visit the Health in Aging Advocacy Center
	AGS Members Only Resources

What is the Caring for an Aging America Act of 2008?
The purpose of the Caring for an Aging America Act of 2008 (S.2708/H.R.6337) is to attract and retain trained healthcare professionals and direct care workers by providing loan forgiveness and career advancement opportunities in a variety of disciples. The bill will also establish a health and long-term care workforce advisory panel for an aging America. The legislation has three main objectives:

To build a cadre of health professionals trained in the care of older adults by linking educational loan repayment to a service commitment to the aging population;
Expand career advancement opportunities for direct care workers in long-term care settings; and
Create a Health and Long-Term Care Workforce Advisory Panel for an Aging America.

Detailed information about these provisions can be found in the bill summary.

Why is the Caring for an Aging America Act so important?

Most health providers in the U.S. receive almost no formal training in the fields of geriatrics or gerontology, which undermines quality of care for America's seniors.
There is an urgent need to prepare the entire healthcare workforce to better serve the increasing numbers of older adults, as was found in the Institute of Medicine report "Retooling for an Aging America: Building the Health Care Workforce." These shifts will place additional pressure on health care providers, especially providers who specialize in geriatrics, as these professionals are already in short supply. For more information refer to AGS' Geriatrician Shortage Briefing.
Currently, there are 7,128 certified geriatricians; it is estimated that 36,000 geriatricians will be needed by 2030.
In addition, less than 3% of U.S. medical students opt to take an elective in geriatrics and only 5% of social workers and 3% of advance practice nurses specialize in aging.
Also, recruitment and retention of direct care workers in home-based care, assisted living and nursing homes also is a looming crisis due to low wages and few benefits, lack of work status, lack of career advancement, potential for injury and inadequate training. For more information on loan forgiveness programs refer to AGS' Loan Forgiveness Briefing.

What is AGS' role in this legislation?
AGS worked closely with Senator Barbara Boxer's staff to review and comment on the draft legislation of the bipartisan Caring for an Aging America Act of 2008 (S. 2708/H.R. 6337) which was introduced in the Senate March 5, 2008. A companion bill in the House was also introduced on June 20, 2008 by Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-MI). Senate cosponsors of the bill include: Susan Collins (R-ME), Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Herb Kohl (D-WI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Tim Johnson (D-SD) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) -- many of whom signed on following AGS' Congressional Hill Visit Program in May 2008. House cosponsors of the bill include: Stephen Cohen (D-TN) and Joe Baca (D-CA).

What is the current status of this legislation?
The Caring for an Aging America Act of 2008 has been referred to the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee for review and mark-up.

How many organizations have signed-on in support of this legislation?
In addition to AGS, there are fifty-seven (57) other organizations supporting the Caring for An Aging America Act of 2008, including:

AARP	Gray Panthers
Alliance for Aging Research	Illinois Geriatrics Society
Alliance for Retired Americans	International Longevity Center USA
Alzheimer's Association	Louisiana Geriatrics Society
American Academy of Home Care Physicians	Massachusetts Geriatrics Society
American Academy of Physician Assistants	Metropolitan Washington DC Geriatrics Society
American Assn. of Homes and Services for the Aging	Nat'l Center on Caregiving, Family Caregiver Alliance
American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry	Nat'l Hispanic Medical Association
American College of Health Care Administrators	Nat'l PACE Association
American College of Nurse Practitioners	Nat'l Association for Geriatric Education
American College of Physicians	Nat'l Association of Area Agencies on Aging
American Health Care Association and the Nat'l Center for Assisted Living	Nat'l Association of Geriatric Centers
American Medical Directors Association	Nat'l Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers
American Psychological Association	Nat'l Association of Social Workers
American Public Health Association	Nat'l Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare
Arizona Geriatrics Society	Nat'l Council on Aging
Association for Gerontology in Higher Education	Nat'l Indian Council on Aging
Association of BellTel Retirees Inc.	Nevada Geriatrics Society
California Council on Gerontology and Geriatrics	New York Academy of Medicine
California Geriatric Education Center	Ohio Geriatrics Society
California Geriatrics Society	On Lok Senior Health Services
Coalition of Geriatric Nursing Organizations	OWL - The Voice of Midlife and Older Women
Connecticut Geriatrics Society	Pennsylvania Geriatrics Society - Western Division
Council on Social Work Education	Pennsylvania Geriatrics Society -Eastern Division
David Geffen School of Geriatric Medicine at UCLA	San Francisco Consortium for Elder Abuse Prevention
Direct Care Alliance	San Francisco In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority
Experience Works	UCLA Center for Policy Research on Aging
Gerontological Society of America	UCLA Multicampus Program in Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology

What is AGS' position on the Caring for an Aging America Act?
AGS has endorsed the Caring for An Aging America Act. There is an urgent need to prepare the entire healthcare workforce to better serve the increasing numbers of older adults. The AGS believes that Senator Boxer's legislation can play a major role in addressing this issue.

In addition, the findings of the Institute of Medicine's recent report, "Retooling for an Aging America: Building the Health Care Workforce," further underscore the need for this legislation.