With healthcare reform expected to take center stage in next year’s Congress, advocates from the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) continue to educate Congress on the need for increased geriatric care to meet the needs of the aging population.
On October 21, 2010 Anissa Rogers (University of Portland) and Marla Berg-Weger (St. Louis University) visited with lawmakers in Washington, D.C. through a Hill Day coordinated by the Eldercare Workforce Alliance. Rogers and Berg-Weger pressed for significant increases in appropriations for education and training in various programs, including:
- Geriatric academic career awards;
- Direct care worker training programs;
- Geriatric nurse workforce development programs;
- Geriatric education centers;
- Geriatric training programs for physicians, dentists, and behavioral and mental health professionals; and
- Geriatric career incentive awards programs.
These investments need to be a high priority in the implementation of the Affordable Health Care for America Act in light of the graying of America.