Reference no: EM132559799

Community well-being is a universal human concern that engages the young as well as the aging. However, as we age, the well-being of individuals shifts in need and the focus on policy, technology and where and how we live is often overlooked until the need is critical. How we age and how we take care of the aging is a direct result of our values about individual versus societal responsibility and how the demographic, economic, and political context shapes the types of policies passed and the nature of eligibility criteria. We know the policy-making process is complicated by the fact that the older population is not one political constituency but several, in which race, gender, class, functional ability, sexual orientation, and rural/urban residence and may be greater influencers than age. As noted in your text - Although public spending for older adults has increased in terms of total dollars, it has declined when measured as percentage of the gross national product. More importantly, older adults and their families now spend more on health and long-term care than they did before the passage of Medicare and Medicaid. Autonomy and dignity as we age is a convergence of policies and social interventions that involve individual responsibility as well as community awareness and the willingness and ability to act. Gerontology as a field is at the front of this challenge by translating gerontological research findings for policy makers and the general public as well as advocating at the local, state, and federal levels.

Objectives: At the end of this module, the student will be able to:

Question 1. Describe the primary federal policies, programs, and regulations intended to benefit older adults

Question 2. Analyze the historical, economic, and political context that has affected the development of age-based policies / relate these factors to the intergenerational inequity debate

Question 3. List the primary characteristics of Social Security

Question 4. Analyze the benefits and limitations of Medicare coverage / discuss its future stability and solvency

Question 5. Report Medicare and Medicaid as the two major insurance systems for the benefit of older adults

Question 6. Identify limitations of current policies and future directions for long-term services and supports