December 7, 2021, Washington, DC—As the Senate considers the Build Back Better legislation passed by the House, top organizations in aging services and workforce research, serving tens of millions of Americans, issued an urgent appeal to Senators to support the bill’s long-overdue investments in services for older adults.

Leaders of the organizations said investments in home and community-based services, affordable housing, and measures to increase the workforce are desperately needed to address the sector’s severe workforce shortage that is impacting the ability of older adults to access the care and services they need.  

“The Senate’s job is clear: to adopt these investments without shaving off one dollar, and indeed to increase them,” said Katie Smith Sloan, President & CEO of LeadingAge. “What happens in the next few weeks will determine whether millions of Americans can access the care they need as they grow older… care that includes everything from remaining in their own homes as their needs change, to getting quality 24/7 care if they need that help in a local nursing home, to finding affordable places to live.”

Organizational leaders discussed what is at stake for older Americans if the Senate fails to act on investments in aging services, warning of the dire consequences to older Americans and their families. Research shows that more than half of us will need long-term services and support as we grow older. 

“Build Back Better has the potential to change the lives of older adults and their caregivers. It is essential that the American people and policymakers understand how and why,” said Mike King, President & CEO of Volunteers of America and incoming Board Chair of LeadingAge. “Build Back Better would provide more affordable housing for low-income older adults, it would increase wages of direct care staff, and fund programs to recruit, retain and train workers in aging services.” 

Yet, despite the crisis facing older Americans, public conversation about Build Back Better virtually ignores older adults. According to LeadingAge’s The Invisible Americans analysis, showing how older adults are being ignored in the Build Back Better public discourse, only a little over 6% of media coverage on the legislation has even included a reference to older Americans. 

“The stakes could not be higher for older adults and families who need help now,” added Sloan. “And don’t forget, half of all Americans will need long-term services and supports at some point as they age—so all of our futures also rest in Congress’s hands.”

Remarks by Telepresser Speakers 

• Robert Espinoza, Vice President of Policy, PHI
  • “This is not a partisan issue. As COVID-19 has tragically underscored, home care workers and nursing assistants are essential to the lives of older adults, people with disabilities and their families. Because of growing demand and high turnover, the long-term care sector will need to fill 7.4 million jobs in direct care between 2019 and 2029. Build Back Better would address this. We urgently call on Congress to enact and properly fund the Build Back Better plan.”
• Charlotte Haberaecker, President and CEO, Lutheran Services in America
  • “Build Back Better’s $150 billion funding for home and community-based services would increase access to care and services, which our country needs as the population ages. We see the needs every day, particularly in rural communities, where transportation and caregiver support are limited. The Build Back Better Act is also critical in addressing the acute workforce shortages we face and recognizing the valuable role of frontline workers in empowering older adults to live with dignity, respect and independence ”
• Karyne Jones, President and CEO, National Caucus and Center on Black Aging 
  • “Affordable housing should never be seen as something we simply do for poor people. These people have worked for most of their lives, raised children, and contributed to their communities. Lack of affordable housing has a negative impact in every state—particularly for older adults who may not have the opportunity to increase their incomes.”
• Kristen Kiefer, Chief Advocacy & Engagement Officer, National Council on Aging 
  • “Millions of American families spend months on waiting lists for [home and community-based] care for loved ones. When people cannot get the services they need, caregiving falls to family, and it takes an enormous physical and financial toll. Home care is not only a healthcare issue or a provider issue—it is a middle-class family economic issue. Aging with dignity shouldn’t be a stroke of luck or only available to the privileged few. Build Back Better is a step toward equity in aging—ensuring every person can age with dignity in the place they call home.”
• Jatrice Martel Gaiter, Executive Vice President of External Affairs, Volunteers of America 
  •  “We are on the front lines every day. Our staff is professional and dedicated to serving older adults in affordable housing, assisted living, and in their  communities.  The need for government investment is dire. Volunteers of America recently broke ground on a new affordable housing community for seniors in Las Vegas that has 43 units. There’s already a 5 year waiting list for older adults wanting to move into these homes. Build Back Better would help older adults get the care they need by addressing shortages in both affordable housing and the aging services workforce.” 

The telepresser video can be found here. Biographical information on the speakers can be found here. 

The public also backs measures in the Build Back Better bill that increase support for older adults. According to a recent survey 89% of Americans support an increased public investment in affordable home care services, and 86% support “increased public investment in housing and support for low-income older adults to address the shortages and waiting lists that lead to homelessness, instability and skipping meals and medicine to pay rent.”
 

RESOURCES: 

LeadingAge The Invisible Americans analysis showing how discussion of older adults is largely absent from the public discourse around Build Back Better / Reconciliation.  

LeadingAge’s November 10 letter to Congressional leadership on critical aging services investments needed in Build Back Better. 

LeadingAge’s Build Back Better one-pager on nursing home staffing provisions. 

LeadingAge’s Vision for Professionalizing the Direct Care Workforce. The vision is built on six strategies: expanding the caregiver pipeline, strengthening education and training, facilitating career advancement, increasing compensation, preparing universal workers, and reforming the long-term services and supports financing system. Two page executive summary is here; full report is here. 

LeadingAge’s Making Care Work Pay Report, captures the substantial benefits that would accrue throughout the economy if direct care workers earned at least a living wage. Two page executive summary is here; full report is here. About LeadingAge:

We represent more than 5,000 nonprofit aging services providers and other mission-minded organizations that touch millions of lives every day. Alongside our members and 38 state partners, we use applied research, advocacy, education, and community-building to make America a better place to grow old. Our membership, which now includes the providers of the Visiting Nurse Associations of America, encompasses the continuum of services for people as they age, including those with disabilities. We bring together the most inventive minds in the field to lead and innovate solutions that support older adults wherever they call home. For more information visit leadingage.org.