New Report: Healthy Aging Begins at Home

BPC Forum on Healthy Aging at Home Report

On May 23, the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) released its latest report: “Healthy Aging Begins at Home.”

To launch the report, the BPC hosted a forum to discuss the research, recommendations, and next steps. Members of the task force included former HUD Secretaries Henry Cisneros and Mel Martinez, former Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz, and former Congressman Vin Weber.

The BPC views the report as a call to action for health care, housing, and policy makers to come together and improve seniors’ lives.

“Our report doesn’t have all the answers, but we hope it will start a national discussion on these issues,” said former Congressman Vin Weber.

LeadingAge supports many of the report’s recommendations, including:

• Better integrating housing and services.
• Funding federal rental-assistance at adequate levels.
• Support continued funding at adequate levels for rental assistance and service coordination under Sec. 202.
• Creating and funding a new program for senior-supported housing using LIHTC to support new construction.
• Preserve existing Section 202 communities by making them eligible for the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program.
• Support service coordination.
• “Substantially increasing” LIHTC.

LeadingAge’s Housing and Center for Applied Research teams attended the event.

“We are grateful to the Bipartisan Policy Center for shining light on the nation’s need to increase the supply of affordable housing, meet the needs of aging homeowners, integrate health care and services with housing, and harness technology to support successful aging,” said Niles Godes LeadingAge senior vice resident of congressional affairs and housing.

Read LeadingAge’s complete statement and analysis.