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GCOA's Senior Issues Newsletter: Week of February 27, 2023
Senior Issues Weekly Newsletter March 3, 2023
2023 Legislative Session:
Legislative Days 24-27
In this Issue:
It's been a week of long days at the Capitol as we approach Crossover Day this upcoming Monday, March 6th, a critical point in the 2023 Legislative Session. Floor sessions have been running well into the afternoons and committee meetings running late into the evenings. Monday is the last day for a bill to make it from one Chamber to the other in order to be considered for passing in the current legislative session. Every day is crucial as legislators approach this deadline.
The daily schedule at the Capitol as well as live streams of hearings and other pertinent information about the legislature can be found at legis.ga.gov .
Keep reading for updates on the 2023 CO-AGE priorities.
HCBS Funds Adult Day Care
Adult Day Care Centers provide support for individuals who need some help with activities of daily living but do not require 24-hour nursing care. These centers offer services such as daytime personal care, meals in a supervised group community setting, social and recreational programming, medication management, and counseling. This is another level of care and support that falls under the umbrella of Home and Community Based Services, keeping older adults at home and out of long-term care facilities. Find out for about Adult Day Care HERE.
Wednesday, March 1st, Legislative Day 26, was Alzheimer's Awareness Day at the Capitol. GCOA advocacy partner, the Georgia Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association, hosted dozens of advocates and met Representatives at the ropes. The handout that the advocates shared with legislators included the CO-AGE HCBS budget ask for $10 million, stressing the importance of these services for the 338,000 family members and friends who provide $9.3 billion worth of care for over 150,000 Georgians living with Alzheimer's and dementia. See a news story on the event HERE.
Prioritizing Payment Options for Assisted Living
The national Center for Excellence in Assisted Living (CEAL), which has focused on advancing the well-being of people who live in assisted living communities through research, practice, and policy for 20 years, just opened new doors at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Payment options for assisted living will be one of the key priorities that the Center will focus on moving forward. Read more about it HERE.
After much discussion, analysis, and deliberation, the Improvements to Assisted Living Communities bill, HB 582, has been tabled for the time being. This layered issue is going to require further dialogue, research, and work in order to move forward. Stay tuned.
Teledentistry Bill Moves Forward
The National Mobile & Teledentistry Conference is currently happening in Dallas, TX providing the opportunity for industry leaders and dentistry professionals from all around the world to come together to dive into the future of oral care.
On Wednesday, March 1st, the Teledentistry bill, HB 441, brought forth by the Georgia Dental Association, was heard again in a House Health Committee meeting. This time it was passed by the committee and will now go to the House Floor for a vote. While the bill seeks to expand the use of Teledentistry, our advocacy partners still have some concerns about it.
11 States Have State-Facilitated Retirement Savings Programs
Wednesday, February 22nd, Legislative Day, was AARP's Advocacy Day at the Capitol. Dozens of AARP volunteer advocates from across the state gathered to meet legislators at the ropes to promote the Work and Save program, asking them to consider the creation of public-private retirement savings partnership. These advocates raised their voices on behalf of over 2 million working Georgians who do not have a way to save for retirement through their job. Read more about AARP's Advocacy Day HERE.
Now that Senator Chuck Hufstetler has agreed to sponsor the bill in the Senate, the Work and Save priority will continue to move forward to be assigned a bill number and then assigned to a committee. Advocacy partners are looking for potential bill sponsors in the House.
16 States Are Considering State-Facilitated Retirement Savings Programs
Sixteen states have new initiatives in the works to help private-sector workers save while eleven states already have individual retirement account savings programs in place. Assets from these programs are expected to hit the $1 billion mark this year with over 1 million savers participating in them. Read more about the progress that other states are making HERE.
While the Work and Save bill has a sponsor, it has not been heard in a committee yet. There is still time for it to be heard before the end of Crossover Day.
Join or Renew Your CO-AGE Membership
The Georgia Council on Aging's Coalition of Advocates for Georgia's Elderly (CO-AGE) is meant to be:
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a forum to identify and address concerns of older Georgians
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a vehicle for bringing broad-based input on aging issues from across the state
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a diverse group of organizations, individuals, consumers and providers interested in "aging specific" and inter-generational issues
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a unifying force communicating the importance of providing supportive communities and adequate services & programs for older Georgians
Anyone interested in advocating with or on behalf of older adults can join
CO-AGE. Individual Membership is only $10! Sign up HERE or
If you are already a member, please make sure that your account is up to date. In order to accurately and effectively link our CO-AGE members to their legislators, it's important that we have the most updated home addresses in our database. If you had a change of address recently, please contact Patrice Parker at patrice.parker@dhs.ga.gov and she will update your address in our system. All home addresses will remain confidential!
Senior Week 2023 Recap
Watch the Webinar
View the photo gallery HERE.
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