New Grants Totaling Over $2.5 Million Approved by JAHF Board of Trustees
The John A. Hartford Foundation Board of Trustees approved new grants totaling $2,532,783 to improve the lives of older adults by fostering social connections, reframing aging and analyzing policies impacting the older population.
National Center to Reframe Aging: Driving Toward Sustainability and Long-Term Social Change ($1,156,500 for 3 years)
Gerontological Society of America (GSA)
This grant will continue support of the National Center to Reframe Aging, which works to counter the pervasive unproductive beliefs about aging that are barriers to improving the care of older people in the United States. In prior phases, ten national aging organizations (including the Gerontological Society of America, which hosts the National Center) partnered with the non-profit FrameWorks Institute to conduct research and develop tools to help professionals in the field of aging change the public’s understanding of older adults and aging issues. In this next phase, the National Center will solidify its position as the nation’s go-to hub for advancing proven communication strategies about aging, strengthen the National Center’s infrastructure for sustainability, create new partnerships, and expand its communications. The National Center is co-funded by the Archstone Foundation, RRF Foundation for Aging and The SCAN Foundation.
Fostering Social Connection for Older Adults and Caregivers in Communities: Planning Grant ($1,126,283 for 2 years)
USAging
The goal of this planning grant to USAging is to improve the health of older adults and their caregivers through replication of evidence-based social connection programs in communities. Socially isolated older adults face an increased risk of early mortality, comparable to that of smoking and obesity. Promoting social connection is a critical part of age-friendly care that focuses on “What Matters” to older adults and their caregivers. Funding will support a seed grant pilot program, technical assistance to grantees, and capacity building for the Aging Network and community organizations. The outcomes will include results from eight community seed grants and a final report identifying a plan for broader replication of effective programs in alignment with the age-friendly ecosystem.
Older Adults at Risk: The Future of Medicaid and the Older Americans Act ($250,000 for 2 years)
KFF
During this two-year project, KFF will conduct a series of analyses to assess the implications of potential changes to Medicaid and the Older Americans Act, using the most current national and state-level data, with emphasis on how the oldest and most vulnerable populations would be affected. Analyses will include a focus on topics related to nursing home resident characteristics and staffing levels, trends in national and state-level funding for Older Americans Act-supported programs and services, and the intersection of potential funding reductions and other policy changes for older adults across Medicaid and the Older Americans Act. KFF will disseminate findings to a wide audience of journalists, federal and state policymakers, researchers and interest groups.
