Tag Archives for Long-Term Care Coordinating Council

Benefits for seniors from Rhode Island’s next budget

Published in RINewsToday on June 17, 2024 

With a 35-2 vote in the Senate early on Friday the Senate gave its approval for a $13.963 billion budget for the 2025 fiscal year, comprising 13 articles that direct additional funding toward education and children, raises Medicaid reimbursement rates, health care support, and includes a $120 million affordable housing bond. The 300-page budget bill – read here, 2024-H 7225Aaa has now gone to Gov. Dan McKee, who is scheduled to sign it at an event Monday, June 17, at 11:15 a.m. in the State Room on the second floor of the State House.

Rhode Island’s FY 2025 Budget and Seniors

House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi (D-Dist. 23, Warwick) reeled off specifics as to how this year’s budget proposal impacts senior programs and services, noting that it aims to lower the rising housing and health care costs that impact the quality of life of older Rhode Islanders. “We have asked the voters to approve an additional $120 million in funds to increase affordable housing production. The budget accelerates a commitment to raising Medicaid reimbursement rates for services to care for our most vulnerable seniors and people living with disabilities to stabilize our health care and human service provider networks,” noted Shekarchi. 

Under the budget proposal tax relief is provided to seniors who rely on retirement income, raising the exemption to $50,000 for qualified single filers and $100,000 for joint filers. It also repeals the suspension of annual cost of living (COLA) adjustments for retirees in the state pension system who retired before 2012 and moves up the timeline for resumption of COLA for other state retirees. 

Lawmakers changed the calculation for pension benefits to base it on the highest three consecutive years of earning instead of five. Finally, the House Speaker noted that this budget fully funds Medicaid rate increases for home care and other services that help seniors age with dignity in the community and stay in their homes if they so desire, and also increases support for services provided in nursing or assisted living settings. 

Adds Senate President Dominick J. Ruggerio(D-Dist. 4, North Providence, Providence), “I am pleased that the budget will invest in many Senate priorities, particularly in the areas of health care, child care, education and providing some needed relief to retirees,” says Ruggerio. “Specifically, the budget incorporates $2.7 million for primary care provider training sites, as well as $500,000 for tuition assistance for students who enter the primary care field and remain in Rhode Island. The budget also includes funding for purchasing medical debt for pennies on the dollar,” he says. 

But how does the aging network view this spending plan? 

According to Maureen Maigret, Policy Advisor with the Senior Agenda Coalition of RI (SACRI), under the spending plan approved by the Assembly $103.2 Million in all funds was added to the Governor’s proposed budget to fully fund the social and human service provider rate increases as recommended by the state’s Office Health of Insurance Commissioner (OHIC) based on the comprehensive legislatively mandated Rate Review Study performed in 2023. According to Maigret, who served as a member of the Advisory Task Force for the Rate Study, the full funding was especially important for those older adults and persons with disabilities seeking access to home and community services. 

“Too many persons on Medicaid have been waiting three months or longer to access needed home care supports which can cause health to deteriorate or to consider nursing home placement at far more expense to the state,” Maigret said. Maigret noted the increases would raise rates for providers of home care, assisted living, shared living and adult day services – all critical to helping persons with support needs to be able to stay at home where most persons with care needs prefer to live. 

Senior Agenda Coalition has worked for many years to promote better access to home and community-based services and to advocate for better wages for the direct care workers who provide this care,” she added, noting that these individuals are usually women, mostly women of color, and for too long have been undervalued and underpaid she noted. In 2022 the SACRI advocated with the legislature to set a minimum wage of at least $17/hour; however, the budget only called for a minimum of $15/hour. With full funding for the recommended home and community care provider rates, we would like to see these essential workers get a minimum starting wage of at least $25/hour in order to recruit and retain the necessary workers. 

SACRI also successfully pushed along with other housing advocates for the addition of $20 Million more to the Housing Bond to go on the November ballot for a total of $120 Million, Maigret added, noting that the coalition continues to advocate for paying adequate attention to the housing needs of older adults in the allocation of the bond funds. “Increasing affordable housing options for this population is critical,” says Maigret, stressing that census data shows that 53% of older RI renters pay more than 30% of their income on housing and studies show that 43% of extremely low-income RI renters are seniors. In the housing space, passage of bills to streamline development of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) advanced by House Speaker Shekarchi along with most of his housing package was also a major win for expanding housing options and development. 

The legislature also addressed SACRI and its advocacy partners push to increase income eligibility for the Medicare Savings Program (MSP) that helps lower-income Medicare enrollees not on Medicaid afford needed healthcare and save dollars for other needed basic needs by covering Part B premiums ($176/month in 2024) as well as required co-payments for some with very low-incomes. “The budget includes a provision requiring the state to seek federal approval to increase the eligibility for the Medicare Savings Program for “qualified individuals” (currently persons with annual income between $18,312 and $20,331) up to 185% of the federal poverty level ($27,861),” says Maigret, adding that the Coalition plans to monitor the approval process and to seek additional legislation, if needed, next Legislative session to further expand the program. Maigret says that lawmakers expanded the Temporary Caregiver Insurance Program up to 8 weeks but SACRI was disappointed that siblings and grandchildren were not added to the list of persons for whom a worker could get paid leave.

“We will continue to advocate for these additions and to increase the number of weeks of leave up to 12 which is provided by most states that have such a program,” she says. And finally, SACRI will continue to advocate for additional funding for the Office of Healthy Aging to provide each of our communities with at least $10/per person age 65 and over to help support local senior centers and programs for older adults, says Maigret, as well as increasing the income cap to $50,000 for eligibility for the state Property Tax Relief Program (called the Circuit Breaker program) that provides a tax credit or refund for older homeowners and renters and those on Social Security Disability. 

FY 2025 Budget Helps State’s Nursing Homes  

James Nyberg, Executive Director  of LeadingAgeRI is pleased with the infusion of much-needed funds in the FY 2025 Budget to help support financially-distressed nursing homes as they continue to provide quality care in a very difficult environment.  “The providers are clearly in distress and we need to avoid any further closures to ensure access to care, resident choice and well-being, and support for the workforce,” he says.  “We also are grateful that the OHIC-recommended rate increases for various programs, including assisted living and adult day services, were expedited with full implementation this October.  Assisted living providers are scheduled for a 10.8% rate increase and adult day a 19.8% increase.  This will help support our home and community-based providers and those for whom they care, says Nyberg, who serves on the Advisory Task Force for the Rate Study. Lastly,

LeadingAgeRI supports the FY 25 Budget’s increase in the housing bond to $120 million, and calls for a portion of it to be used to expand safe and affordable senior housing, the lack of which is well-documented, including a recent report by the Long-Term Care Coordinating Council. According to Nyberg, one legislative priority that remains is to establish a Medicaid rate add-on for private rooms in nursing homes, since Medicaid is the primary payer for nursing home care.  “This would be an important step in helping to support a more homelike environment and resident privacy and dignity,” he says.

“RI nursing homes have been chronically underfunded since the implementation of the reimbursement methodology over thirteen (13) years ago,” charges John E. Gage, President & CEO of the Rhode Island Health Care Association, representing 62 nursing home providers. “Cuts to the annual inflation index, failure to re-base rates every three years since, and skyrocketing costs since the beginning of the pandemic have put RI nursing facilities at significant financial risk,” he says.

“The FY ’25 Budget passed the Rhode Island General Assembly includes funding for the first-ever rebase of Medicaid Rates since the inception of the Priced Based Reimbursement System back in 2013,” says Gage, noting that this increase represents a 14.5% increase with an estimated increase in revenue of $66 million beginning October 1, 2024, based on actual expenses from the most recent Medicaid Cost Reports from 2022. 

Additionally, Gage says that the budget as passed includes $10 million in State Fiscal Recovery Fund Grants to stabilize RI’s nursing facilities from July 1, 2024, through the implementation of the new rates on October 1. 

Pension changes initiated 

“Our primary task during this past General Assembly session has been to strongly support Bill H-8193, introduced by Rep. Pat Serpa, which would see the return of the COLA which was so ruthlessly slashed away in 2011. It applied to all current and future retirees, including teachers, state workers, and some municipal employees, says Sandra Paquette, representing Advocates for COLA Restoration and Pension Reform, a non-profit representing 4,700 retirees.

However, the actual pension provision in this year’s budget provides for the restoring of a compounded COLA to those who retired prior to July 1, 2012, notes Paquette. “Initially, this was a disappointment to our organization, as we had hoped for much needed relief for all who have been so detrimentally affected by Rhode Island Retirement Security Act — creating a financial crisis in the lives of so many lifetime workers. But further thought and consideration caused us to realize that the pension benefits in this year’s budget represent a huge step in a 13 year’s duration of no progress whatsoever in alleviating the injustice, she adds.

“And we are delighted that after so many years, older persons in the state retirement system who retired prior to 2012 will finally see a COLA,” says Maigret, “This is especially important for those who do not receive Social Security benefits.”

Editor’s Note: Added comments

Union thoughts…

Jesse Martin, Executive Vice President of SEIU 1199 NE and President of Rhode Island SEIU State Council said, “For months, union members of Rhode Island SEIU State Council have been working to raise awareness of issues that matter most to working Rhode Island families and, as a result, made great strides in healthcare, wages, funding, retirement, career training and more to the benefit of all. This year’s budget contains emergency funding to keep Linn Health open until August, provides funding to paraprofessional healthcare workers to help them advance in their careers, streamlines the hiring process at DHS and DCYF in order to attract new qualified candidates and finally enables domestic workers to earn the minimum wage. We thank all our elected leaders who offered their steadfast support and prioritized the needs of working Rhode Islanders.” 

The Rhode Island SEIU State Council, which is representative of all four SEIU affiliate locals, represents a variety of workers across the state, including healthcare, Department of Children and Families, Janitorial, Family Child Care, Department of Labor and Training, Security, Workforce Development and more. Nationwide, the Service Employees International Union represents over two million members.

Kathleen Gerard, Advocates for Better Care in Rhode Island, added, “”We were very glad to see the passage of the full Medicaid reimbursement increases recommended by the OHIC this session, and will continue to advocate for measures that ensure that our public funds are put towards the public good of improved wages for direct care staff and improved care for residents.” 

Hail Mary PR Effort Puts Spotlight on Inadequate RI Nursing Home Medicaid Plan

Published in RINewsToday on December 4, 2023

Last week, a campaign by Linn Health & Rehabilitation told of its efforts to keep its doors open.  With no immediate state reimbursement fix in sight, the nonprofit nursing home, established 52 years ago, launched a savvy PR move, calling it a “Hail Mary” effort to find its Christmas miracle donors and funding to prevent it from closing or forcing the displacement of 71 residents and the laying off of 150 staff members. A clever twist on the message resulted in a story on Rhode Island television stations, talk radio, and pick up by other media outlets.

For over 10 years, Linn Health, which had only recently been named a 2024 “Best Nursing Home” and “High-Performing” short-term rehabilitation home in the nation by U.S. News & World Report, has been fighting rampant inflation, rising food and utility costs, high temporary staffing agency rates, and low state Medicaid reimbursement rates that haven’t kept pace with increasing expenses – as most nursing homes have been as well. 

Linn Health & Rehabilitation is currently losing $100,000 a month, notes Richard Gamache, MS, FACHCA, chief executive officer of Aldersbridge Communities which is the nonprofit that operates the nursing facility, senior housing, affordable assisted living, and outpatient rehab for older Rhode Islanders.

“For years, we’ve operated with a slight loss, but the other Aldersbridge entities were able to subsidize that loss.  As a mission-driven provider for low-income people and those on Medicaid, we aren’t here to make money, we’re here to serve our community’s needs,” he says, noting that the gap between the facility’s costs and its daily Medicaid rate is now just too great.

“Bleeding Cash” drastically impacts facility’s bottom line

Gamache noted that Aldersbridge Communities had been able to support its nursing home but it has now reached a “tipping point.”  During COVID the federal and state governments were very generous with grants. “That’s no longer an option, and the money is running out quickly,” he says.

“We’re in dire straits, financially,” admits the seasoned CEO, who has been in the long-term care field for over 43 years.  “We’re struggling.  We have some vendors who understand and are being patient with us, and others who tack on charges if we don’t pay on  time,” he says.

“Eighty-two percent of our residents are on Medicaid and don’t have families who can take care of them. We are their family and support system, and some have been discharged from other assisted living communities because they ran out of money,” he says. 

In recent months, Gamache reports he has meet with peers, East Providence lawmakers, state officials, and even nursing facility trade groups seeking a viable solution to the state’s Medicaid reimbursement issues. “I have proposed options such as bridge funding and higher Medicaid reimbursement rates, as many other states have done, to address this nationwide problem. It seems only nursing home residents, their families, employees, leaders of surviving homes that are hanging by their fingernails, and some advocacy groups care about the financial predicament we are in. We’ve made everyone aware and we will not stop fighting for funding that we need,” he says.  

According to Jamie L. Sanford, LNHA, LCSW, administrator of Linn Health & Rehabilitation, since 2022, six nursing homes in Rhode Island have shut their doors permanently, not counting the four that closed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Three more have filed for bankruptcy, she says, noting that many nursing homes throughout the nation are in the same financial predicament. 

“Linn’s Medicaid reimbursement rate averages $255 per patient per day, and it costs $411 to care for each patient per day,” states Sanford. “The general population thinks that nursing homes make a lot of money. Perhaps that’s true in some for-profit organizations where they are owned by large corporations, but nonprofit homes are robbing Peter to pay Paul. These are the homes – like us – that are on life support, operationally speaking,” she notes.

Joseph Wendelken of the RI Department of Health says that the state is attempting to ease the financial burden of facilities providing care to Rhode Island nursing facility residents. “Nursing homes in Rhode Island received an increase in Medicaid reimbursement rates on October 1, 2023. The increase varied by facility, but it was approximately 6.9%. Per Rhode Island legislation, there is a mandatory review of nursing home expenses every three years called the ‘re-array.’ The current re-array is in progress and any potential increase in the nursing home rates would begin as of October 1, 2024,” he noted.  

But facilities can’t wait a year for the state’s Medicaid adjustment to kick-in and immediate action must be taken. “Essentially, the state is breaking its own law by not conducting the re-array every three years, which was put in place to keep up with the national nursing home inflation index. The last re-array was in October of 2012. Even with an increase next fall, it won’t be enough to help close the funding gap now,” charges Michael Cole, vice president of the Board of Trustees for Aldersbridge Communities.

It’s time for a savvy PR campaign   

With no immediate financial solutions in sight, Gamache and his management team staff have been working on their own grassroots PR campaign, calling it a “Hail Mary” effort, to save Linn Health from having to displace its staff and residents.  

Linn Health’s PR campaign was seen as the next logical step to quickly tackle its financial problems, after months of alerting staff officials of the need for action. 

“Everyone with the authority to do something to help has all the information they need. Now we need action. I often hear, ‘there’s not enough money in the budget’ but the fact is, these are policy decisions. It’s about priorities,” says Gamache. 

“Do we value our older adults enough to provide for their basic needs? What kind of values do we have as a state and as a society?” asks Gamache. 

“Now it’s time to get the story into the public domain. Many people feel that nursing homes are making money hand over fist and that we’re all diverting funds to pay for yachts,” says Gamache. “Although it’s true that there are some bad apples in this profession, I believe most of us want to do what’s right, and for Linn Health and Aldersbridge Communities, a mission-driven non-profit, we’ve always cared more about better outcomes for our people than more income. We just can’t afford to operate much longer,” he warns.

The residents and staff at Linn are doing everything they can, including holding baked goods sales to raise funds. “No one wants to leave Linn, and no one wants us to be sold to another organization,” Sanford comments. “During this season of holiday miracles, we’re working to find donors who believe in what we’re doing now, and for our future. There must be a donor out there who can help us fight the proverbial ‘grinch’ that is causing nursing homes to disappear throughout the country and in our state. All we want for Christmas is to keep caring for our residents who depend on us,” she says.

“This situation exemplifies the dire straits that RI nursing homes are in, especially the community-based ones like non-profit providers.  We have been working with state officials, including the Governor’s office, EOHHS, the Health Department, and other stakeholders to highlight the crisis and the need for immediate action,” says James Nyberg, president and CEO of LeadingAge Rhode Island.  LeadingAge, founded in 1989, is a not-for-profit membership organization of not-for-profit providers of aging services, including not-for-profit nursing homes, assisted living residences, and senior housing providers, and adult day health services. 

“They have recognized our concerns and we are hopeful that some action will be taken ASAP to provide an infusion of funding.  Any nursing home closure has profound and disruptive consequences for residents, staff, families, and the broader community.  With six nursing homes closing and three in receivership, how many more proverbial canaries in the coal mine do we need?” adds Nyberg.

“Unfortunately, Linn Health’s story is emblematic of a wider crisis facing Rhode Island nursing facilities.  Nursing facilities are facing unprecedented increases in nearly all aspects of providing care – staffing costs, energy prices, inflation on food, medical supplies, etc. At the same time, Medicaid rates have not kept pace,” says John Gage, president and CEO of the Rhode Island Health Care Association.  In 2023, RI’s nursing homes are being paid by Medicaid based on the actual allowable cost of care from 2011 with an average of approximately 1% increase annually,” he said.  RIHCA was founded in 1972, and has 63 skilled nursing facilities who are members.

Finally, Maureen Maigret, former Director of the RI Department of Elderly Affairs who serves as a member of the Long-Term Care Coordinating Council and chair of its Aging in Community Subcommittee, weighs in. “The financial challenges faced by Linn Health are worrisome and point to a need for the State to take a very close look at the financial status of Rhode Island nursing homes in general,” she said, noting that few persons can afford privately paid nursing home care at an average cost of $113,000 per year. 

“So unless skilled care is paid by Medicare, Medicaid becomes the payer for a large percent of nursing home care in Rhode Island and rates must be adequate to provide the quality care we expect our loved ones to receive if they need the round the clock care provided in nursing homes,” Maigret adds. 

Linn is asking that interested charitable organization and donors willing to help Linn Health & Rehabilitation’s financial situation to contact Aldersbridge Communities Director of Development, Elise Strom at estrom@aldersbridge.org, 401-438-4456 ext. 136.

Time to be educated on senior issues with primary just weeks away

Published in RINewsToday on August 22, 2022

On Aug. 17, just twenty-eight days before Rhode Island’s Sept. 13th Primary Election, at the Warwick-based Pilgrim Senior Center, Gov. Dan McKee joined Lt. Governor Sabina Matos, House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi, other elected leaders and advocates to highlight recently passed legislative and budget initiatives that supported  Rhode Island’s senior population. The Governor ceremonially signed legislation passed this legislative session. 

Among those investments is $4 million in the FY 23 state budget to increase the Circuit Breaker Tax Credit available to qualifying seniors and adults with disabilities, raising the maximum credit received to $600 and increasing the income threshold for eligibility to $ 35,000.  This property tax credit program provides relief to eligible seniors and adults with disabilities who own or rent their homes. The budget also increases the amount of pension income that is exempt from state taxation for all retirees from the first $15,000 to the first $20,000.

Whether it’s tax relief, housing, food security, or utilities, our Administration is looking at these issues through the lens of ensuring our seniors are able to not just live in the Ocean State, but that they are also able to thrive here,” stated the McKee at the event, a continuation of his #RIMomentum Tour. “I am proud to deliver a budget and sign several pieces of legislation that support and protect our seniors, and I thank the sponsors and advocates who helped see them across the finish line,” he said.

“Both as chair of the Long Term Care Coordinating Council, and as a granddaughter whose family cares for a senior, I am dedicated to ensuring that every Rhode Islander has the support they need to live full, rich, and long lives. The budget we have passed this year, along with the bills signed today, will significantly improve on our seniors’ quality of life,” said Lt. Gov. Sabina Matos. “We are going to continue working to provide high-quality services to our neighbors of every age.”

With his ceremonially pen, the Governor also signed these pieces of legislation:

H7133B (Reps, Joseph M. McNamara) and S2207A (Sen. Joshua Miller): This legislation authorizes the creation and implementation of a pharmaceutical redistribution program by the Department of Health and the Board of Pharmacy to begin on Jan. 1, 2023.

H7246 (Representative Jason Knight) and S2228 (Senator Cynthia A. Coyne): This legislation lowers the age at which a victim can be considered an elder under the state’s elder financial exploitation laws.

H 7068 (Representative Kathleen A. Fogarty) and S2317   (Senator V. Susan Sosnowski): This legislation makes it easier for senior citizens to apply for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.

Aging Advocates Gear Up for Next Legislative Session

McKee’s ceremonial signing of legislation was a visible sign to aging advocates that state officials are recognizing that these are wise investments that foster healthy lives and economic security for our growing older population, says Maureen Maigret, Chair of the Aging in Community Subcommittee of the Long Term Care Coordinating Council and serves on the Board of Directors for the Senior Agenda Coalition and the Village Common of RI. “The budget builds on Subcommittee promoted legislation sponsored by Rep. Deb Ruggiero and Sen. Cynthis Coyne to expand the Property Tax Relief law and last year’s addition of close to $1Million in Governor McKee’s budget to increase income eligibility for the Office of Healthy Aging ‘At Home Cost Share’ program and to include persons under age 65 with Alzheimer’s and other dementias,” she said. 

According to Maigret, several items from the Sub-committee’s Strategic Plan that did not make it this year are the expansion of the Medicare Savings Program to help lower-income adults pay for Medicare Part B’s hefty premiums and extending the state Paid Family Leave law beyond six weeks which will help families needing to take time out of work to care for both older relatives and children needing medical/nursing care. “These are just some of the items we will be advocating for in 2023,” she said.

Maigret notes that September’s Primary Election is less than a month away. “New laws make it easier to vote.  You can apply online for a mail ballot for the Primary which must be sent in by August 23rd, she says. 

Becoming an Educated Voter on Senior Issues

According to Ballotpedia, the website encyclopedia of American politics, all 435 voting seats in the House of Representatives and 34 Senate Seats will be up for grabs on the midterm elections scheduled for Nov. 8, 2022 . The seats of five of the six non-voting members of the House are also up for election as well. 

Ballotpedia notes, state elective offices up for election in 2022 include 36 gubernatorial seats, 30 lieutenant gubernatorial seats, 30 attorney general seats, and 27 secretary of state seats. Including down-ballot races, there are 309 state executive offices up for election across 44 states in 2022, says Ballotpedia.

Also, 88 of the country’s 99 state legislative chambers will also hold regularly scheduled elections, representing 6,278 of the nation’s 7,283 legislative seats, adds Ballotpedia.

The Washington, DC-based AARP gears up its efforts, through its “Our Voices Decide” campaign, to ensure that America’s seniors can continue to maximize their influence on this year’s midterm elections (at both the state and national levels) like they have for previous elections. 

According to AARP Rhode Island, AARP in every state has a voter engagement page that provides information on when, how and where to vote and, in many states, recent changes in voting laws. Ours is at www.aarp.org/RIVotes. This webpage is updated frequently. 

Many states also post video voter guides, in which candidates are asked questions. In Rhode Island – and in every state — candidates were strictly limited to 60 seconds or less to respond. Texts of the questions and answers on video are posted online. The candidate responses appear in alphabetical order, just as they would appear on the ballot, says AARP Rhode Island.

AARP has provided voting information for many years. AARP Rhode Island featured videos of candidates for Governor in 2020. We chose to feature candidates in three contested 2022 Primary races – Governor, 2nd Congressional District and Providence Mayor, says AARP Rhode Island.

“Voting gives you the power to decide what our future looks like,” AARP Rhode Island State Director Catherine said. “But you have to be in the know to vote. AARP Rhode Island sees the importance of collecting the most up-to-date election information, including key dates and deadlines, to make sure that the voices of voters 50+ are heard. We are doing everything we can to make sure older Rhode Islanders are prepared to vote and know the safe and secure voting options included in the new, AARP Rhode Island-backed Let RI Vote Act. Our Video Voter Guide takes this a step further and with an important focus, giving older voters clear, concise answers on issues that impact their lives. Debates and candidate forums seldom focus on these questions and that is why AARP steps in to give voters a non-partisan, trusted resource to better understand where candidates stand before they cast their votes,” she says.

“In Rhode Island and across the country, the data clearly shows that 50+ voters will be the deciders in the 2022 elections,” said Taylor. “We are working with dozens of advocacy volunteers who are fighting for voters 50+ to make their voices heard on the issues that matter – especially in Rhode Island where we are in the midst of a housing crisis, nursing homes are in jeopardy, the cost of long-term care is skyrocketing and where people want leaders who are committed to making local communities more livable,” she adds.

“At the federal level, older voters want to know candidates’ positions on protecting and strengthening the Social Security benefits Americans have paid into and earned through years of hard work, protecting and improving Medicare benefits, lowering prescription drug prices, and supporting family caregivers who risk their careers and financial futures to care for parents, spouses, and other loved ones,” Taylor said.

Other Resources…

On August 3 the Senior Agenda Coalition of RI co-hosted a Governor’s Candidates Forum hosted by 17 organizations (www.senioragendari.org/coalition). To learn how the candidates from both parties responded to seven questions about aging policy and issues. Go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=okQ5FguKMao