Editor’s Picks: Home Care Movement Takes Stand At White House

In case you missed it, here are the top headlines grabbing readers’ attention this week, plus some other notable stories from around the web that caught our eye here at HHCN:

Spotlight On: White House Conference on Aging 

A lot was said about home care during the White House Conference on Aging on Monday, with President Obama sharing his own thoughts regarding helping seniors flourish at home.

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“My grandmother was a fiercely independent woman,” the president said. “ After my grandfather died, she chose to live independently. Having worked hard and played by the rules, she was rewarded with a safe foundation for retirement and she could not fall through those cracks. As a grateful grandson — who happens to be president — that’s a promise I’ll make sure we’re going to keep for future generations. But we’re going to have to work for it. We have to work to do more to ensure that every older American has the resources and support they need to thrive. [That means] dealing with rising costs of an aging generation [and] ensuring we have enough home care workers caring for our family members.”

Here is HHCN’s coverage related to the big event event:

Home Care Takes ‘Fight for 15′ to Obama’s Doorstep — The Fight For 15 movement, which advocates for home care workers to receive $15 and union rights, discussed the challenges caregivers face due to a low living wage at the recent White House Conference on Aging.

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CEO Interview: Why Honor is Donating $1 Million in Free Home Care — Home care startup Honor announced at the White House Conference on Aging that it is donating a total of $1 million in free home care across 10 cities. HHCN sat down with the company’s founder and CEO, Seth Sternberg, to learn more.

Home Health 2.0: Connecting Uber, Peapod and Providers — Bruce Chernof, M.D., one of the nation’s foremost experts on senior care and aging issues, sat down with HHCN to discuss his views on the recent White House Conference on Aging and other topics.

Most Read:

Wall Street Stays Amped on Big 3 Home Health Companies — Amedisys, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMED), LHC Group (Nasdaq: LHC) and Almost Family, Inc. (Nasdaq: AFAM) are leading the pack for growth on Wall Street, according to the most recent Home Health Index (HHI) from Stoneridge Partners, a merger and acquisition firm that provides intermediary services to home care, hospice and behavioral health agencies.

Legislative Roundup: 

The Older Americans Act (OAA), which supports home and community based services, has faced challenges over the years. But in January 2015 the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee approved bipartisan legislation. This legislation, S. 192, the “Older Americans Act Amendments of 2015,” would reauthorize the OAA for three years and make improvements to benefit older Americans and their families. On Thursday it passed the Senate and now moves on to the House.

Assistant Secretary for Aging Kathy Greenlee issued this statement regarding the recent legislative update:

“We applaud the Senate for passing the Older Americans Act and advancing it one major step toward reauthorization,” Greenlee says. “This critical legislation, which was signed into law 50 years ago this week, provides high-quality, individualized services that improve the health, safety, and well-being of nearly 12 million older adults and one million family caregivers. It is key to enabling older adults to live their lives with dignity and respect in the homes and communities they choose.”

Weekend Read:

Tiny Homes Keep Seniors Close To Family, Away From Assisted Living — Tiny homes are an emerging trend that experts say can help families with aging seniors by offering an alternative to assisted living. 

Written by Cassandra Dowell

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