Tag Archives for Senate Aging Committee

Senate Aging Committee: Seniors urged to prepare for making financial decisions – Herb Weiss

Published in RINewsToday on January 31, 2022

Over two weeks ago, U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Tim Scott (R-SC), Chairman and Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, urged seniors and people with disabilities to make a New Year’s resolution to prepare for anticipated financial decisions.

The hearing highlighted the importance of President Joseph Biden’s Dec. 2021 executive order to enhance customer experiences across federal agencies and align services to support people at critical decision points in their lives, like turning 65. This executive order expands retirees’ ability to claim Social Security benefits online, receive updates on their application status and access personalized online tools for Medicare enrollment and coverage options.

At this Senate Aging Committee hearing held on Jan. 13, the Senators released a bipartisan report entitled, “Financial Literacy in Retirement: Providing Just-in-Time Information and Assistance to Older Americans and People with Disabilities” along with a brochure for consumers to help them navigate these decisions.

This Senate Aging Committee report examines the real-time information and help older Americans and people with disabilities need as they face changes in their lives, known as “just-in-time” financial literacy.

“This year, more than 10,000 Americans will turn 65 every day. Around kitchen tables all across the country, retirees and seniors are asking: ‘Should I take my Social Security or should I wait?’ and ‘Do I need to sign up for Medicare, or can I wait?’ These are not simple decisions,” said Casey. “As we begin 2022, I urge seniors to make a New Year’s resolution: take stock of your finances and get prepared for these upcoming decisions, says the Pennsylvania Senator in a statement.

Adds Scott, “Financial literacy is key to making the most out of the financial opportunities our country has to offer. And much like education, it never loses its power — no matter your stage of life,” noting that the report will empower seniors to make wise financial decisions, laying the groundwork for security and peace of mind in their golden years.

The 26-page report identifies the six common decisions that require, and can benefit from, this kind of financial literacy: claiming Social Security, enrolling in Medicare, annuitizing a 401(k), giving to charity, downsizing a home, and responding to a natural disaster.

Putting the spotlight on Financial Literacy in Retirement

Four witnesses testified at the one hour and 18-minute hearing.

In her testimony, Gerri Walsh, President of the Washington, DC-based Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, applauded the timeliness of the hearing because “financial literacy in America is low and has declined over time.”  She cited a 2009 study that found 42 percent of American adults demonstrated high levels of financial literacy, this figure deceasing to 34 percent in 2018. “Despite increasing low levels of financial literacy, 71 precent of Americans believe they have a high level of financial knowledge, suggesting widespread over confidence,” she told the attending Senators.

According to Cindy Hounsell, JD, President of the Washington, DC-based Women’s Institute for a Secure Retirement, many workers are not knowledgeable about issues they will face during their retirement.  The impact of future inflation and taxes is not known by most and is not included in financial planning for retirement. This can have an impact on retirement income. Individuals also are oftentimes confused about how much income they will need to cover their expenses in retirement.  Many retirees struggle to plan how they will draw down assets.  Longevity risk is poorly understood and not widely planning for.  Finally, women assume they will keep working beyond age 65 but will end up retiring earlier than expected due to job loss due to health issues, or caregiving.

“As a nation with an aging population, we need to educate the public on strengthening existing retirement programs wherever possible,” said Hounsell, “That means focusing especially on the links to both Social Security and Medicare, employer-sponsored retirement programs and emergency saving initiatives, and educating average workers about how these systems work to prevent penalties and loss of benefits,” she added.

Workers Not Knowledgeable About Retirement Issues

According to Hounsell, many workers are not knowledgeable about issues they will face during their retirement.  The impact of future inflation and taxes is not known by most and is not included in financial planning for retirement.  This can have an impact on retirement income. Individuals also are oftentimes confused about how much income they will need to cover their expenses in retirement. Many retirees struggle to plan how they will draw down assets.  Longevity risk is poorly understood and not widely planning for. Finally, women assume they will keep working beyond age 65 but will end up retiring earlier than expected due to job loss, health issues, or caregiving.

Dorothea Bernique, founder and executive director of North Charleston, South Carolina-based Increasing H.O.P.E. a financial training center, reported that 14.9 percent of the South Carolina households have income below the federal poverty threshold and have a lack of basic financial knowledge, this resulting in a very low well-being score of 18 percent in the state.

Bernique noted that lack of basic financial knowledge can result in seniors not having the ability to make choices during retirement. “Hence this is how our seniors end up as greeters at the nearest Walmart when they should be enjoying the golden years of their lives,” she said.

Finally,  Patti Szarowicz, a certified Aging and Disability Resource Connection (ADRC) Counselor at the Atlanta Regional Commission Area on Aging,  stated that she plays a critical role in assisting seniors navigate complex systems.  She helps callers to locate the nearest senior center and to find rides to medical appointments, to identify financial assistance in paying bills, securing home and community-based services and respite support groups for caregivers.

“I can hear the pain and despair in the voices of callers, who say things like, ‘I’m in trouble, and I don’t know what to do. Please call me back, I’m going to be homeless,’” she says.

Szarowicz called on Congress to support ADRCs to hire additional councilors, allocate more funding to enhance user-friendly technology for documenting client data and better integration across technology systems used, which includes telephone, resource database and client management systems. Public awareness of the national network of Area Agencies on Aging is also key to directing people to unbiased guidance for resources.

Take advantage of the Senate Aging Committee’s resources to make financial decisions, in your retirement years. You won’t regret it. 

To obtain a copy of the Senate Aging Committee report, go to https://www.aging.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Financial%20Literacy%20Booklet.pdf.

To obtain a copy of the brochure, go to https://www.aging.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Financial%20Literacy%20Brochure.pdf

Contact financial_literacy@aging.senate.gov to request printed copies of the brochure.

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Tackling surge of COVID-19 in Nursing Homes

Published ion RINewToday on December 15, 2020

Over the months, while public health officials watch the uptick in new COVID-19 cases, Congress releases two reports, one taking a snapshot of nursing home performance and resident deaths throughout the first eight months of the pandemic, and the other one sounding the alarm about the impact of COVID-19 on the nation’s nursing homes and warning it is now getting worse.  

About three months ago, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) announced the release of a 67-page report on care provided in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities throughout the nation during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The comprehensive report, titled “COVID-19 and Nursing Homes: What Went Wrong and Next Steps,” reviewed U.S. nursing home performance during the early fall and summer months of the pandemic. According to the report, more than two out of five deaths due to COVID-19 in the United States are linked to nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

Stopping the Spread of COVID-19 in Nursing Homes

“Partisan finger pointing, rather than meaningful analysis, cannot serve as a useful guide for policymakers in crafting the necessary bipartisan reforms in response to the unprecedented challenges facing this entire sector and its employees working on the frontlines during this pandemic,” says the Senate Finance committee report, released on Sept. 23. It stressed that suggestions that coronavirus-related deaths in nursing facilities “are attributable solely, or even primarily, to acts or omissions by the current administration falls well short of addressing the multi-faceted problems in this sector.”

The report added, “Such a one-dimensional approach necessarily overlooks several factors that fueled the outbreak of COVID-19 in nursing homes across the United States, and around the world. Minimizing, or devoting scant attention to such factors, makes it enormously difficult for members of Congress to come together in support of long-overdue reforms and bipartisan solutions to the complex problems facing nursing homes today.” 


The report, produced by the majority staff of the Senate Finance Committee, examined what steps might have prevented these fatalities by minimizing the spread of COVID-19 in the facilities and discussed what actions could be taken now to slow the surge of deaths in nursing homes during this and future pandemics.  

While new coronavirus cases have surged to nursing homes throughout the nation and despite federal and state efforts to stall the spreading of the virus, the Senate Finance Committee report noted that facilities have already received significant relief assistance from Congress and the Trump administration totaling approximately $21 billion in addition to technical assistance, guidance and training.

The report’s findings noted that for years preceding the COVID-19 outbreak in March, private nursing homes have had widespread deficiencies in infection control and prevention.  The majority staff also found that state governments and health officials in some of the hard-hit states fell short of their responsibility to ensure quality care, and in multiple states, staffing and supply shortages persisted for years prior to the pandemic. 

Nursing homes around the world have struggled with many of the same issues as the United States during the pandemic, including Europe, the United Kingdom and Canada, noted the report.

State governments in some cases also failed to enforce federal guidelines for these care facilities as required through their participation in Medicare and Medicaid, particularly guidance provided to minimize coronavirus transmission in their facilities, noted the report. In addition, the majority staff found that nursing home staff who work in multiple facilities unknowingly played a key role in spread of COVID-19 in nursing homes. 


Finally, the Senate Finance Committee report also noted that several governors pressured nursing facilities to accept COVID-19 patients when personal protective equipment (PPE) was still in short supply and some did so even after the federal government made temporary hospitals available in their jurisdictions. 
·       
The Senate Finance Committee report provided, to members of the Senate Finance Committee with detailed background information on the many challenges that nursing homes continue to face during this year’s public health crisis. It provides Congressional lawmakers with specific recommendations, based on best practices that some facilities and public officials adopted during the ongoing pandemic to protect their residents and staff.  It also includes additional suggestions to better protect the nation’s older Americans from elder abuse, neglect and exploitation.

 
Updating the Grim Toll of COVID-19 Deaths in Nursing Homes 

Last week, U.S. Senators Bob Casey (D-PA), Ranking Member of the Special Committee on Aging, and Ron Wyden (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, released their report that warned that the already dire situation in nursing homes is worsening.

“It’s with great sadness that we are once again giving a grim update on the toll that COVID-19 is continuing to take on nursing homes. It’s abundantly clear that inaction has contributed to the loss of more than 104,000 mothers, fathers, grandparents, friends and neighbors who lived and worked in nursing homes and long-term care facilities across the country,” said Senators Casey and Wyden, in a statement announcing the report released on Dec. 10. “Experts are predicting that we are heading into the most severe months of the COVID-19 pandemic, marred by climbing caseloads and increasing stress on our Nation’s health care system,” they say, calling on the Senate colleagues to hammer out and pass a comprehensive COVID-19 relief bill. 

According to the eight-page report, entitled, “The Cost of Inaction: 19 Deaths an Hour and Rising,” last month, more than 15 nursing home residents died from COVID-19 per hour, with 19 residents dying each hour during the week of November 22, 2020, the most recent week reported.

The Senate Aging Committee report noted that the number of weekly COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents has increased 133 percent since Labor Day, and 96 percent among nursing home workers during the same period. Workforce shortages have also increased since Labor Day: In November, one in six nursing homes nationwide reported that they do not have a sufficient workforce, says the report.

The Democratic Senators warned that COVID-19 cases will surge in nursing homes if Congress does not come together to hammer out bipartisan legislation to stop the spread of the pandemic.

These new report findings serve as a warning as to what will come if Congress does not come together to alleviate the COVID-19 crisis in nursing homes, says Casey and Wyden. It calls for a national strategy to save lives in nursing homes, including providing facilities with a sufficient supply of PPE, ample access to testing, resources for vaccine distribution, funding for strike teams and adequate workforce supports, and accountability measures to uphold resident rights and permit safe visits with family.

Finally, in the Ocean State…

Just days ago,the latest update of the AARP Nursing Home COVID-19 Dashboard, released by AARP’s Public Policy Institute, unveiled a new report in a series on improving the care of care provided in the nation’s nursing homes. “Rhode Island’s nursing homes continue to face alarming trends,” says the AARP report.

Using data released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services—which is self-reported by nursing homes—the AARP Public Policy Institute, in collaboration with the Scripps Gerontology Center at Miami University in Ohio, created the AARP Nursing Home COVID-19 Dashboard to provide four-week snapshots of the virus’ infiltration into nursing homes and impact on nursing home residents and staff. The dashboard will continue to be updated every four weeks.

In the four weeks analyzed, from October 19 to November 15, AARP’s dashboard reports that Rhode Island nursing homes had a dramatic increase in resident and staff cases, and a higher percentage of facilities reporting they are without a 1-week supply of PPE.

“With coronavirus surging across the country, nursing home residents and staff remain in grave danger as the virus reenters nursing homes and other facilities at an alarming pace,” said AARP State Director Kathleen Connell.  “Facilities continue to have shortages of the staff and PPE needed to keep residents and workers safe and stop the spread. Our state leaders must act now to save lives,” she said.

Connell added, “AARP will continue fighting to protect nursing home residents now and offering solutions to improve our long-term care system for the decades to come.”

For copies of Senate reports go to: https://www.aging.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/The%20Cost%20of%20Inaction.%2019%20Deaths%20and%20Hour%20and%20Rising.pdf; 

https://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/SFCNursingHomesCOVIDMajorityStaffSFCReport23Sep2020FINAL.pdf.

The complete dashboard is available at aarp.org/nursinghomedashboard.

Senate Aging Committee Tackles COVID-19’s Devastating Impact on Seniors

Published in the Woonsocket Call on May 24, 2020

In the midst of bipartisan bickering on Capitol Hill as to what should be included in the fifth coronavirus (COVID-19) stimulus package, the Senate Aging Committee holds Congress’s first hearing in Senate Russell Office Building 301 on the disproportionate toll the COVID pandemic is having on the nation’s seniors, particularly those who reside in nursing homes.

Adults ages 65 years and older represent two out of every five hospitalizations and eight out of every 10 deaths from the virus. The 1.5 million nursing home residents and seniors residing in group care settings (including assisted living facilities) are especially at risk. Nationwide, residents and workers in nursing homes and other long-term care settings represent more than one-third of all COVID-19 deaths. According to reports, to date more than 34,000 nursing home residents have died from COVID-19.

COVID-19’s Deadly Toll on Seniors

The Senate hearing, “Caring for Seniors Amid the COVID-19 Crisis,” held on Thursday, March 21, 2020, explored what can be done to better protect this vulnerable population. Over two hours, Senators heard testimony from a panel of experts who are supporting older adults in hospitals, nursing homes, home health settings, and the community. (Due to the limited access to the Capitol Complex, the public is only able to view the morning hearing live on the committee’s website at https://www.aging.senate.gov/hearings/caring-for-seniors-amid-the-covid-19-crisis.

“COVID-19 has brought tremendous hardship and tragedy, placing a heavy burden on the frontline workers, straining our healthcare and distribution systems, and imposing a deadly toll on our seniors in particular,” said Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), who chairs the Senate Aging Committee. “Those in nursing homes and congregate care centers are especially at risk. Nationwide, nursing home residents represent one-third of all coronavirus deaths. In Maine, the toll on nursing home residents is even higher,” adds Collins.

“Our nation is facing the greatest public health crisis it has seen in a century. This terrible virus is causing death and destruction at lightning speed, especially among older Americans who are most vulnerable for complications from COVID-19,” added Ranking Member Bob Casey (D-Pennsylvania). “We have added unprecedented amounts of funding to purchase personal protective equipment, testing and ensure seniors in the community have access to home and community-based services that keep them out of congregate settings, but this is not nearly enough. We cannot stop working we cannot stop legislating, we cannot stop appropriating dollars to help our seniors,” says Casey.

“This unprecedented time calls for equally unprecedented action. The Administration has to do more and Congress has to do more to help our seniors and their families at every turn,” said Casey. During the hearing, the Senator highlighted his bill (S.3768), the Nursing Home COVID-19 Protection and Prevention Act, introduced with Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island, which would help mitigate the pandemic’s disproportionate impact on nursing homes by helping states purchase personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing and fund premium pay, overtime and other essential benefits for nursing home workers.

Taking a Look at Universal Testing of Nursing Home Residents

Collins directed her first question at the hearing to Dr. Tamara Konetzka, a professor of health services research at the University of Chicago, who has conducted research on the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on nursing home residents and staff. She asked Dr. Konetzka to explain how universal testing can protect residents and eventually allow family members to safely visit their loved ones.

“Dr. Konetzka, I want to have you expand a little bit more on what we can do,” said Collins. “I believe that you recommended universal testing for every nursing home resident and staff, which I think is a good idea and have been recommending. How often, however, would you have to do that, and would that allow family members who have been tested to finally be able to visit their loved ones?”

“[I]t is very important to test all residents, and not wait until residents are…symptomatic, because by then it’s too late,” replied Dr. Konetzka. “[W]hat I’ve heard from geriatricians is generally weekly [testing] would be good or at least biweekly, so that residents can then be separated and the transmission can be stopped.”

Collins also emphasized that testing was needed at every long-term care facility, since even the highest rated nursing homes have been susceptible to outbreaks.

At the hearing, Senator Collins called for the release of additional health care provider funding that was made available through the CARES Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act.

“[T]he ratings by CMS, the number of stars, has not proven to be a reliable indicator of which nursing homes are safest in this environment. And indeed, one of the worst outbreaks in Maine was at a nursing home that had five stars,” remarked Collins. “[W]hen we hear the statistics, which are so devastating…my heart just goes out not only to these patients, but to their families and to the staff of nursing homes and other assisted living facilities, congregate care settings. They’re all praying that COVID-19 does not find its way into their facility,”she said.

As the chief infectious disease specialist for New York University, Dr. Mark J. Mulligan oversees the treatment of COVID-19 patients at the University’s health system hospitals. At the hearing, he explained that seniors are at increased risk due to aging-related decline of the immune system as well as chronic conditions such as cancer, heart disease, lung disease, and diabetes, and that older adults who reside in nursing homes are the most vulnerable.

Medical Countermeasures to Combat COVID-19

Dr. Mulligan provided an overview of the medical countermeasures under development—diagnostics, monoclonal antibodies, and potential treatments such as remdesivir.

“For physicians, scientists, and leaders, the virus has continued to humble us. There’s so much we don’t know yet about diagnosis, prevention, and treatment,” said Dr. Mulligan. “The nurses and doctors I have worked with are incredibly dedicated and caring, but they have not had the medical countermeasures needed to effectively help many vulnerable seniors who have died of this disease,” he adds.

Finally, the final panelist, Dr. Steven Landers, the President and CEO of Visiting Nurse Association Health Group who oversees a team of 3,000 caregivers that cares for 9,000 people daily, provided a home health perspective on the public health crisis. According to Landers, maintaining this a supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is both challenging and expensive. “We are using over 17,000 surgical masks and over 3,500 N95 masks each week and we are also using thousands of isolation gowns, gloves, goggles and face shields. We have had to pay 7-10 times the usual prices and reach out to vendors all over the world, vendors who we couldn’t fully vet and verify, sometimes just hoping that shipments would arrive,” he say, calling on Congress to find ways prioritize home health and hospice agencies getting needed PPE.

“I have never seen the system so strained, but I also have never felt prouder of the skilled, compassionate, and courageous people I work with,” he said.

Herb Weiss, LRI’12, is a Pawtucket writer covering aging, health care and medical issues. To purchase Taking Charge: Collected Stories on Aging Boldly, a collection of 79 of his weekly commentaries, go to herbweiss.com.