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HHS Takes First Step to Establish
One-Stop Centers for Senior Citizens
By Tucker Sutherland, editor
June 4, 2003 - A significant problem for
senior citizens in our nation, states and communities is finding
information needed on senior programs. This is particularly acute for
the elderly and their caregivers, but now the government is taking a
step to improve the situation.
The Health and Human Services Department
has announced a new grant program to help states develop one-stop
shopping centers for seniors and people with disabilities who need
long-term care information. HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson has
labeled the program as Steps to Encourage Healthy Aging.
Under the new grant program, HHS will
support state efforts to develop Aging and Disability Resource Centers
to provide long-term care information to consumers. HHS is soliciting
proposals from states to create such resource centers and will support
as many as 16 such projects with grants of up to $800,000 per year for
three years.
The program supports President Bush's
New Freedom Initiative, a government-wide initiative aimed at
eliminating barriers that unnecessarily hinder Americans with
disabilities as they seek to participate fully in the life of their
communities. The resource center grants will help states to
effectively integrate their many long-term support resources for
consumers into a single coordinated system.
"As I've traveled across the country,
one thing I've heard loud and clear is that families need access to
reliable and accurate information about long-term support services,"
HHS Assistant Secretary for Aging Josefina Carbonell said. "These
centers will serve as visible and trusted places where people can turn
for information on the full range of long-term care options and
assistance in accessing the options supported by public programs."
Secretary Thompson talked about the new
grants program at a breakfast meeting with the Leadership Council of
Aging Organizations. The resource center grants are a joint effort of
HHS' Administration on Aging (AoA) and Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services (CMS).
"Resource Centers will be a tremendous
help to families who are often desperate to find appropriate,
affordable care for a loved one near home," CMS Administrator Tom
Scully said. "These grants are just the beginning of what we hope
will be an effective network for these families."
Any state may apply for a resource
center grant. Applications must have the support and active
involvement of the State Agency on Aging and the state Medicaid
agency. The deadline for applications is July 28.
A notice soliciting proposals for the
new program was published in the Federal Register on May 29. More
information about the program is available at
http://www.aoa.gov or
www.cms.hhs.gov/newfreedom.
Thompson also called on older Americans
to increase their physical activity -- an essential part of healthy
aging -- and joined senior citizens and leaders of national aging
organizations on his second annual Older Americans Month Walk on the
National Mall.
"It's never too late to become
physically active," Secretary Thompson said. "No one is too old to
enjoy the benefits of regular physical activity. Regular exercise,
something as simple as walking, has positive effects both mentally and
physically and as a result, can prevent a broad array of diseases and
health problems." |
