OAA Funding Advances in Congress

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Bobbie Guidry

Funding for essential programs that help people age in place were recently approved by the U.S. House and Senate Appropriations Committees. 

On July 11, the House Appropriations Committee approved a spending measure that mostly level-funds home and community-based services under the Older Americans Act, healthcare workforce programs, Community Services Block Grants, Lifespan Respite Care and Social Services Block Grants. 

While we would have liked to have seen more funding increases, given the growth in the elder population, the allocations for programs under the bill approved by the committee exceed the budget requests made by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its own, somewhat more generous measure last month. 

Neither bill has been scheduled for a floor vote yet. These programs likely will be funded by some form of continuing resolution from the beginning of fiscal 2019 on Oct. 1 through the November elections.