News/Press Releases

• .@AmerGeriatrics experts: Here’s what older adults need to #ReopenAmerica that can serve us all as we age #geriatrics #aging http://ow.ly/joXA30qzRDl

New York (April 22, 2020)—As federal and state officials announce plans for reopening the U.S., the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) reiterates important priorities for reopening a country where more individuals than ever before are older adults.

Today’s U.S. is home to more than 50 million people 65-years-old and older, and tomorrow’s U.S. is building the momentum we need for millions more to contribute to our communities as we age. But today’s U.S. also has seen the COVID-19 pandemic jeopardize that progress in critical ways. At present, more than 30 percent of COVID-19 cases involve older people, who also account for 45 percent of hospitalizations, 53 percent of intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, and 80 percent of deaths.

As we look to reopen a country that ensures we remain as safe, healthy, independent, and engaged as possible as we age, AGS experts encourage federal, state, and local authorities to anchor plans in better health and care for us all:

• .@AmerGeriatrics shares more #COVID19 #geriatrics recommendations with #Congress, Trump Administration to inform next wave of federal assistance http://ow.ly/Wj1730qyHJI

New York (April 17, 2020)—In a new series of letters sent yesterday to Congressional leaders, Vice President Pence, and White House Coronavirus Task Force Coordinator Deborah Birx, MD, experts at the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) continued to reinforce the need for medical supplies, telehealth, expertise in older adult care, and a range of other priorities as the federal government plans the next phase of America’s response to COVID-19. As diverse as these important focal points are, they highlight a key theme that crosscuts the pandemic: Building momentum for older adult care builds momentum for us all.

“This virus affects everyone, regardless of age or any other characteristics,” notes AGS CEO Nancy Lundebjerg, MPA. “By advancing supports that serve the most vulnerable, including older people, we can build better treatment and prevention for all Americans.”

New York (April 8, 2020)—In a policy brief published today in its namesake journal (DOI: 10.1111/jgs.16477), the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) offered a roadmap to guide federal, state, and local governments addressing COVID-19 concerns for a critical—and critically impacted—group: Older adults in nursing homes and long-term care. The brief outlined recommendations based on the latest research and guidance, encompassing actions on resource needs, patient transfers, priorities for public health, and opportunities to better empower health workers on the frontlines of COVID-19 care.

“As we’ve already learned, outbreaks in nursing homes are a foreseeable consequence of this pandemic, even with experts working as valiantly as they are,” notes AGS President-Elect Annie Medina-Walpole, MD, AGSF. “We hope this brief can help policymakers, advocates, and clinicians look at but also beyond the circumstances we can control—and those we can’t—to prioritize the innovation, collaboration, and compassion that can put key patients and public health first. That’s a cardinal direction for planning in crisis and in calm, for nursing home residents but also for us all as we age.”

UPDATE (April 3, 2020): The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society published the following update to the original special article highlighted below.

New York (March 27, 2020)—The Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS) this week rushed to publication a special article describing critical points for combatting the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic for older adults and those in long-term care.

The article offers a summary of current information and evidence, noting the imperative for understanding and acting upon the “ABCDs” of the COVID-19 crisis:

New York (March 27, 2020)—The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) today commended Congress and President Trump for supporting critical efforts to expand geriatrics expertise through the more than $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package (S. 3548). 

“Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physician assistants, social workers, and all our geriatrics experts are vital—not just to the U.S. economy but also to our health, safety, and independence, which make our economy what it is,” noted AGS CEO Nancy E. Lundebjerg, MPA. “As we continue to review the stimulus in detail, we applaud Senators Bob Casey and Susan Collins, as well as Representatives Michael Burgess and Jan Schakowsky, who were instrumental in helping prioritize long-term solutions serving older adults in this rapid response to COVID-19.”

The proposals included in the COVID-19 package incorporate language from the earlier proposed Title VII Health Care Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2019 (S. 2997) in the Senate and Educating Medical Professionals and Optimizing Workforce Efficiency and Readiness (EMPOWER) for Health Act of 2019 (H.R. 2781) in the House. While AGS experts remain pleased to see the GWEPs and GACAs reauthorized, they did express concern that the final authorizing level of $40.7 million could compromise the future success of both programs. The AGS continues to advocate for increased funding totaling $51 million, which would do much to close the current geographic and demographic gaps in geriatrics workforce training.

New York (March 26, 2020)—The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) today commended the U.S. Senate for supporting critical efforts to expand geriatrics expertise through the more than $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package (S. 3548), which now heads to the House of Representatives for a vote expected by Friday. With support from Senators Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), the Senate stimulus bill includes an earlier dedicated proposal championed by both lawmakers to reauthorize the Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) and the Geriatrics Academic Career Awards (GACAs).

“Doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physician assistants, social workers, and all our geriatrics experts are vital—not just to the U.S. economy but also to our health, safety, and independence, which make our economy what it is,” noted AGS CEO Nancy E. Lundebjerg, MPA. “As we continue to review the stimulus proposal in detail, we applaud Senators Casey and Collins for helping prioritize long-term solutions in this rapid response to COVID-19.”

New York (March 26, 2020)—Representing more than 6,000 healthcare professionals dedicated to improving the health, independence, and quality of life of older adults, the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) commended congressional leaders and the Trump Administration for signing the Older Americans Act (OAA) Reauthorization Act of 2020 (H.R. 4334) into law.

This key legislation, which will power important social and protective services for older Americans through 2024, adds to critical and much-needed momentum for geriatrics this week in light of COVID-19, including support for workforce training programs in the $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package slated for a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Originally passed in 1965 and last reauthorized in 2016, the Older Americans Act has been vital to health and well-being for older people. The Supporting Older Americans Act of 2020 will:

• .@AmerGeriatrics shares #COVID19 #geriatrics recommendations with #Congress, Trump Administration http://ow.ly/8QIb30qsinc

New York (March 24, 2020)—In letters sent yesterday to Congressional leaders, Vice President Pence, and White House Coronavirus Task Force Coordinator Deborah Birx, MD, experts at the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) reinforced the need for medical supplies, telehealth, expertise in older adult care, and a range of other priorities in response to COVID-19. As diverse as these important focal points are, they highlight a key theme that crosscuts the pandemic: Building momentum for older adult care builds momentum for us all.

• On #WorldDeliriumDay, @AmerGeriatrics launches AGS CoCare: HELP™ to turn tide for serious condition affecting millions #delirium #geriatrics #aging #ThisIsGeriatrics http://ow.ly/8GwJ30qp4OW

New York (March 11, 2020)—With the launch of HELP.AGSCoCare.org, the online home for AGS CoCare: HELP™—a seminal program designed to prevent delirium, functional decline, falls, and other adverse outcomes among hospitalized older adults—the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) hopes this World Delirium Day will be one that turns the tide for this serious health condition affecting millions annually.

“Empowering health systems to recognize, manage, and prevent delirium is a hallmark of geriatrics,” notes Sharon K. Inouye, MD, MPH, who developed the original Hospital Elder Life Program (HELP), now known as AGS CoCare: HELP™. “With this critical expansion of a key program that made delirium prevention possible, we have bandwidth through the AGS to reach more health systems than ever before,” Dr. Inouye concluded.

New York (Feb. 19, 2020)—Experts at the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) raised grave concerns with President Trump’s 2021 budget proposal, which remains “deeply troubling for older Americans, families, and health professionals.” In comments shared below, the AGS warned that the proposal would eliminate training programs, reduce funding for health research, and jeopardize coverage and services for older Americans if adopted as written.

“Even though this proposal is just a ‘wish list’ for now, it sends a troubling message,” said Nancy E. Lundebjerg, MPA, Chief Executive Officer of the AGS. “That’s why we’re urging everyone to let the White House and Congress know that cutting support for older adults now cuts care for us all as we age.”

In assessing the Trump Administration’s proposal, the AGS raised significant objection to changes that fail to reflect the needs of all Americans, particularly those who are most vulnerable.  Specifically, the proposal would: