For more information, please view the press release.
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OMH Commissioner Sharon Carpinello resigned today. We are grateful for her leadership in meeting the mental health needs of New Yorkers and especially for making geriatric mental health a priority in NYS. Dr. Carpinello was an activist with an innovative, positive agenda including advances for children, in suicide prevention, in use of evidence-based practices, and more. She leaves an important legacy. We wish her well in her next endeavors.
The Office of the New York City Public Advocate recently released a report on Adult Protective Services entitled “Unprotected: Adult Protective Services Struggles to Serve Vulnerable Clients.” The report highlights the concern that APS is not serving clients as effectively as possible and that reform is needed. The report offers a number of recommendations including decreasing the number of cases per worker by hiring more staff, increasing the number of training days for prospective caseworkers, and providing equipment to caseworkers so they can work more effectively.
Fed Chief Warns of Crisis Over Elderly Entitlements
By Bloomberg News
January 19, 2007
WASHINGTON -- Federal Reserve chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the U S government may face a "fiscal crisis" in the coming decades if it fails to deal with the rising costs of retirement and medical benefits for the aging population.
"If early and meaningful action is not taken, the U S economy could be seriously weakened, with future generations bearing much of the cost," Bernanke said yesterday at a Senate Budget Committee hearing.
His comments may help frame a debate leading up to President Bush's Feb. 5 budget, in which he will unveil a plan to balance the budget by 2012. Bernanke, unlike his predecessor Alan Greenspan, refused to endorse a strategy on taxes and spending. The projected budget shortfall results from spending on the Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid programs.
While official forecasts may show a stable or narrower budget deficit over the next few years, "unfortunately, we are experiencing what seems likely to be the calm before the storm," Bernanke, 53, said in his first hearing on Capitol Hill since Democrats won control of Congress from the Republicans in November's elections.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is leading an effort by the Bush administration to overhaul Social Security, committing to discussions that have all options on the table.
Bernanke told the committee that the economic growth spurring revenue today won't resolve the budget's long-term challenges.
Under Congressional Budget Office projections, the ratio of federal debt held by the public to gross domestic product will rise to about 100 percent in 2030 and "grow exponentially after that," from about 37 percent now, Bernanke said.
The "effects on the U S economy would be severe," Bernanke said. Rising debt would require increased spending on interest payments, he added. "Thus, a vicious cycle may develop in which large deficits lead to rapid growth in debt and interest payments, which in turn adds to subsequent deficits." The Boston Globe, Business
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Who Will Care For You? By 2030, we'll need between 5.7 and 6.6 million caregivers.
By Robert N. Butler, M.D.
From the AARP
January 2007
There are only four kinds of people in the world: those who have been caregivers; those who are currently caregivers; those who will be caregivers; those who will need caregivers. — Rosalynn Carter
America is facing a critical shortage of competent and compassionate caregivers. Right now about 40 percent of people over 60 and 1.9 million paid caregivers share the burden of providing home care for older or disabled Americans. This doesn't take into account the significant number of people who go completely without the help they need.
The situation will worsen as boomers age. In just 20 years, fully one-fifth of all Americans will have celebrated their 65th birthday. Older people today are healthier than in the past and are living longer. But as they age, boomers will likely require both caregiving for their parents and eventually for themselves. By 2030 the United States will need between 5.7 million and 6.6 million caregivers. The question is, will they be there for us and our loved ones when we need them?
The situation is grave because as a nation we have not been paying attention to the growing problem. Consider this: Paid caregivers can often make more money working in a fast-food restaurant than they can taking care of someone else's family member. And they usually receive no health care benefits, although the nature of the work makes them vulnerable to a variety of physical ailments, particularly back problems as a result of moving patients.
Unpaid family caregivers (61 percent of whom are women) experience significant challenges when they struggle to integrate their family, personal and work responsibilities with the arduous physical and emotional stress of providing care for a loved one. The U.S. economy loses about $33 billion each year in productivity because of employees who are also family caregivers and who must be absent or late to work.
What can be done? One answer to this complex and vexing problem has come from Lawrence Schmieding, an Arkansas agribusinessman and philanthropist who met with difficulties in trying to organize caregiving services for his older brother. He realized that if he, a person of means, was hard- pressed to find caregiving solutions, what about those who lack resources?
So, in 1999 he started the Schmieding Center for Senior Health and Education in Springdale, Ark. In 2006 it joined forces with the International Longevity Center, a policy and education center in New York, to create the Caregiving Project for Older Americans.
What we've found is that America arguably has no caregiving system at all. As the burden on family caregivers grows, the shortage of paid caregivers worsens. There is a critical shortage of direct-care workers. Low wages, few fringe benefits, unpleasant work conditions and lack of career development all contribute to the shortage.
Much needs to be done—figuring out the best ways to recruit and train caregivers; making sure community colleges help them develop career opportunities; and establishing a financial plan to support this huge cadre of health workers. These challenges must be faced and accomplished soon, so that in 2030 no one will have to wonder: "Who will care for me?"
Robert N. Butler is president of the International Longevity Center-USA.
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ReServe - Building a Workforce of Older Adults
What is ReServe and how does it utilize retired professionals to contribute to the field of mental health? ReServe works with organizations in the public and non-profit sectors to place mature, retired professionals in part-time, stipend-paying volunteer opportunities. ReServe recruits, interviews and refers older adults to organizations like the Mental Health Alliance. These organizations cover the $10/hour fee plus a minimal charge for mandated fringes. ReServists typically work 10-15 hours per week. Currently, ReServe’s professionals are working with the United Hospital Fund in evaluating the impact of Naturally Occuring Retirement Communities on the mental health of its participants. ReServe is working with this and many other non-profits and city agencies. How can your organization benefit from the lifetime of skills offered by our highly qualified professionals? For more information, call 718-923- 1400, extension 247; or go online to www.reserveinc.org .
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