Sept. 11, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contacts: Sarah Mashburn, 202-508-9492

Statement from Larry Minnix, President & CEO, American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA) on the Full Report of the 2005 White House Conference on Aging

The legacy of the 2005 White House Conference on Aging (WHCOA) will be recognition of the need to foster a continuum of care for older Americans through reauthorization of the Older Americans Act and the advancement of technologies to help the aging remain independent and in their own homes.

The Older Americans Act (OAA) provides essential supportive services to help older Americans remain at home. We urge Congress to follow the delegates’ recommendations and reauthorize the OAA in this Congress.

Our Center for Aging Services Technologies’ pavilion at the WHCOA helped focus delegates and our country on technology’s potential for transforming aging. Congress can help advance technology solutions for the aging by passing H.R. 5906 and S.3739, legislation to establish a Consortium on the Impact of Technology in Aging Health Services. This consortium will bring together representatives of technology developers, service providers, physicians, researchers, seniors, and insurers on a non-partisan basis to evaluate the potential of technologies to help the U.S. meet the needs of our aging population.

We urge Congress to support this first-ever public-private partnership around technology and aging that goes beyond medical records to explore such areas as promoting independence, facilitating early disease detection, promoting greater support for caregivers and minimizing medication error.

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About AAHSA
The members of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (www.aahsa.org) help millions of individuals and their families every day through mission-driven, not-for-profit organizations dedicated to providing the services that people need, when they need them, in the place they call home. Our 5,800 member organizations, many of which have served their communities for generations, offer the continuum of aging services: adult day services, home health, community services, senior housing, assisted living residences, continuing care retirement communities and nursing homes. AAHSA’s commitment is to create the future of aging services through quality people can trust.