Other Aging-in-Place Initiatives

Josephine Wainwright and Family and Children's Services aide Mirline Louis-Jacques share laundry chores in Wainwright's Colonial Landing apartment in Elkridge. Wainwright is one of the participants in the Aging In Place Initiative.

A number of public and private, federal, state and local agencies and organizations around the country have been approaching the challenge of creating cost-effective aging in place programs in a variety of ways. For example, some states, including Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin, have used waivers from Medicaid - the federal-state program that pays for 50 percent of long-term care in the U.S. - enabling them to funnel more money into community- and home-based services instead of institutional care.

In Annapolis, Md., 1,600 neighbors who are members of the Heritage Harbor Health Group have joined together to fund a health services system that links them to services ranging from blood pressure screenings to education, support groups and a regular "check-in" service to make sure that no resident is in need. They fund the project by paying dues and holding fundraisers. In other areas, in some neighborhoods or apartment complexes that were originally populated by families or younger people, the majority of the residents are now elderly, giving rise to the term "Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORC)." In such communities as Cleveland, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and several other cities, residents have teamed with non-profit service providers or public providers to gain easy access to social workers, home health workers and services such as housecleaning and transportation.

The Philadelphia Corporation for Aging is a nonprofit organization whose objective is to improve the quality of life for the elderly and disabled. Among the services it offers to more than 70,000 families each year are satellite meal programs, a senior help line, health promotion programs, home modification and an emergency fund to pay for expenses such as fuel oil, food and utility bills.

The Portland, Maine, "Independent Transportation Network" serves another important need of people who want to remain in their own homes by providing 24-hour, 7-day-a-week transportation that seniors can use to go to the grocery store, doctors appointments or any other activity that interests.

However, most of the initiatives currently in place have not yet reached the point where they can offer a truly seamless, comprehensive combination of reliably funded services that will allow large numbers of the fast-growing elderly population to remain safely and comfortably in their own homes.

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