Hearing of Subcommittee on Retirement Security and Aging - Planning for an Aging Population

Hearing of Subcommittee on Retirement Security and Aging - Planning for an Aging Population

Good morning and welcome to the Subcommittee on Retirement Security and Aging's first hearing on the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act. I want to thank Senator Mikulski for being here. During the reauthorization process in 2000, we were the chair and ranking member as well. I look forward to working with her on the Older Americans Act once again.

Older Americans are an important and rapidly growing segment of our population. Over 36 million people living in the United States are over the age of 65, accounting for about 12 percent of the population. The Census Bureau projects that 45 years from now, people 65 and older will number nearly 90 million in the United States and comprise 21 percent of the population. Further, we know that 4.6 million people aged 65 and older are still employed.

The Older Americans Act is an important service provider for these Americans. It makes a range of social services available for our aging population including congregate and home-delivered nutrition programs, community service employment, and services to prevent the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of older persons.

As we work toward reauthorization, I plan to hold a series of hearings on the Older Americans Act and other issues facing older Americans. Reauthorizing the Act is a primary goal of this Subcommittee, and I look forward to reviewing and updating the Older Americans Act programs.

I also look forward to the recommendations expected to come from the White House Conference on Aging, which will take place later this year. I am sure they will provide recommendations that will be both informative and timely for this reauthorization.

Today's senior population is very different from what it was in 1965 when the Older Americans Act was created. Our hearing will begin with an overview of the Act -- its history, how it operates today, some of its problems, and some suggested solutions.

Thank you to our witnesses here today. First, I would like to introduce the Assistant Secretary for Aging, Josefina Carbonell. She was sworn in as Assistant Secretary for Aging at the Department of Health and Human Services on August 8, 2001. In her position at the Administration on Aging, she advocates for and works on issues concerning older Americans. The Administration on Aging reaches into every community by providing services, information, and referral on adult day care, elder abuse prevention, home-delivered meals, in-home care, transportation, and caregiver supports. Prior to joining the Administration on Aging, she was President and CEO of the largest Hispanic geriatric health and human services organization in the Nation -- the Little Havana Activities & Nutrition Centers in Dade County, Florida.

Our next, and final, witness is Assistant Secretary Emily DeRocco. She was sworn in as the Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training at the Department of Labor on August 3, 2001. She is responsible for managing the $11.1 billion budget that funds our Nation's public workforce investment system, which includes the Community Service Employment for Older Americans program. She has served in a number of high level federal positions, including serving Cabinet officers at the Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy. She also spent over 10 years as the Executive Director of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies.

I look forward to your testimony today, and thank you both for being here.

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