Older Americans Act Final Rule Offers Greater Supports for Seniors Aging in Place

Last week, the U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL) released the final rule to update the Older Americans Act (OAA) – the first significant change to the act in more than 35 years. The OAA supports a wide array of programs and services to help seniors live independently, including information and referral, congregate and home-delivered meals, health and wellness programs, in-home care, transportation, elder abuse prevention, caregiver support, and adult day care. The rule updates reflect the increased needs of a nearly-doubled senior population since the last rule change. It also solidifies flexibilities put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic that promoted aging in place, such as carry-out meal programs for seniors.

The updated rule, which goes into effect on March 15, also protects seniors by:

• Prioritizing people with the greatest social and economic needs.
• Specifying the broad range of people who can receive services, how funds can be used, fiscal requirements, and other requirements that apply across programs.
• Requiring states to maintain streamlined processes for Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) to establish contracts and commercial relationships.
• Includes guidance for the National Family Caregiver Support Program and the Native American Caregiver Support Program, which were authorized since the last update.

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The rule has been filed in the Federal Register and is scheduled for publication on Feb. 14.