John Kerry: “for the past 47 years, the Older Americans Act, OAA, has provided a wide array of services to improve the lives of older…”

“for the past 47 years, the Older Americans Act, OAA, has provided a wide array of services to improve the lives of older Americans, family caregivers, and persons with disabilities. Through the Act, millions of Americans receive critical home and community-based services including, home-delivered meal programs, transportation, adult day care, legal assistance and health promotion programs. The National Aging Network delivers these vital services to local communities through the Administration on Aging, State Units on Aging, SUAs, and over 600 Area Agencies on Aging, AAAs. The aging network supports a number of health, prevention and wellness programs for older adults, such as, chronic disease self- management programs, alcohol and substance abuse reduction, smoking cessation, weight loss and control, and health screenings. Despite this focus on health promotion, currently, there is no definition of care coordination included in the Older Americans Act. In fact, the unique coordination needed for an older adult with multiple chronic conditions is absent from the definition of the OAA case manager role. The inclusion of care coordination in the OAA is necessary to prepare the aging network for their role in linking medical care to community long-term services and supports. The Affordable Care Act is transforming the health care delivery system through medical home demonstration, Accountable Care Organizations, and the Partnership for Patient-Care Transitions.…”