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Build Back Better Act Provisions Could Strengthen Nursing Home Staffing and Oversight

Nursing homes lead with “nursing” in their nomenclature because they depend on registered nurses (RNs) and nursing care teams to deliver safe care to their residents. Among other nursing home-related provisions, the Build Back Better Act would require nursing homes to have at least one RN on site 24 hours per day, seven days per week. RNs are essential to quality nursing-home care because they bring important skills and competencies not expected from licensed practical nurses and certified nursing assistants. Currently, nursing homes must have an RN at the facility for only eight hours each day.

The Great Resignation Continues, Clouding the Latest Employment Projections

In April U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data showed that a record 4 million Americans quit their jobs, representing the highest number of quits since the measurement's inception in 2000. This "Great Resignation," fueled by the sweeping effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, has spawned a list of unknowns and questions when it comes to labor-market projections. One such question: To what extent will highly educated older workers who left the labor force earlier than planned due to the pandemic decide to reenter the job market?

Person- and Family-Centered Care: How Original Medicare is Innovating

Medicare is taking steps to innovate as it works to achieve better person- and family-centered care—a form of care centered on the goals of ensuring services are tailored to each individual, care decisions being made in partnership with the patient and their family caregiver, and good coordination among all medical professionals involved. AARP Public Policy Institute experts take a look at the Medicare innovations, some of which are being tested through pilot programs and others of which are already permanent elements of the program.

Older Adults in Rural Areas Need Better Health Care Access: a Policy Now Video

More than 20 million Americans ages 50+ live in rural communities, and older adults living in those areas are more likely to be sicker and not have health insurance. Meanwhile, rural residents face a primary- and specialty-provider shortage that is only growing, with the numbers of hospitals continuing to shrink due to closures and mergers. One rural hospital closure means a 16 percent decrease in physicians in the area. While the pandemic brought federal funds to help hospitals stay open, the need for longer-term solutions looms.

AARP and Lowe's Team Up to Improve Aging-in-Place Options

A new collaboration between AARP and home improvement chain Lowe’s will provide strategies and information to help make living spaces more accessible for everyone and allow older adults to stay in their homes safely and comfortably as they age. The two-year collaboration offers information and guidance around home improvement and design techniques to support older adults and family caregivers as they reimagine their homes for the next stage of life. Seventy-seven percent of people 50 and older want to remain in their current homes as they age, according to an AARP survey, but the majority of homes do not have the features needed to support that option. A key issue area of the AARP Public Policy Institute is housing and livable communities.

Native American Nurses Bridge “Two Worlds” to Support Their Communities

Regina Eddie, PhD, RN, and Sandra Littlejohn, MA, BSN, RN, discuss how Native Americans have been hit disproportionately hard by COVID-19, and why it’s so important to increase the number of nurses from that population. Eddie is a diversity consultant for The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and Littlejohn is on its Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Steering Committee.

Apply for the AARP Purpose Prize Award

The AARP Purpose Prize award honors extraordinary individuals who use their life experience to make a better future for all. Hurry! The call for applications ends January 17, 2022. Don’t miss a chance to earn $50,000 for your organization and a year of support to help broaden the scope of your work. Up to 10 fellows will each receive $10,000 for their organization and a year of technical support.

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Editor-in-Chief: Susan C. Reinhard, RN, PhD, FAAN
Senior Writer/Editor: Carl Levesque

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