AARP, ATSSA Endorse Older Driver Safety Bill

Applaud Rep. Altmire for Sponsoring It
 

 AARP and the American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA) strongly endorse H.R. 3355, the Older Driver and Pedestrian Safety and Roadway Enhancement Act of 2009 introduced yesterday by Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Penn.)

“It is estimated that by 2025, one in four drivers will be 65 or older,” U.S. Congressman Jason Altmire (PA-04) said. “Given this fact, we need to make sure we are taking older drivers’ needs into account in our transportation planning. By making improvements that will make roadway hazards more visible and signs easier to read, we can make our roads safer for drivers of all ages.”

David Certner, AARP’s Legislative Policy Director, applauded both the new bill and Rep. Altmire’s leadership. “Congressman Altmire deserves credit not only for introducing this bill,” he said, “but also for having the foresight to recognize that making roads safer for older drivers will make them safer for everyone. Older drivers and teen drivers, their passengers and those who care about them will benefit from investing in safer roads that meet improved standards. As Congress considers updating America’s transportation system, we urge them to also choose to put people and their safety first.”

A recent report from AARP’s Public Policy Institute found that two-thirds of transportation planners and engineers have yet to begin addressing the needs of older Americans in their street planning; yet by 2025, 64 million people will be over the age of 65 and by 2030 a quarter of all U.S. drivers will be over the age of 65.

“This bill will lead America in the right direction when it comes to making driving on our roadways safer for all individuals, including older Americans and pedestrians,” said ATSSA President and CEO Roger Wentz. “As a Representative from Pennsylvania where the older driver population is above the national average, Rep. Altmire fully understands the critical need to ensure that drivers over 65 years old are as safe as possible on the road.”

Most older Americans live in suburbs with limited or no access to public transportation. That percentage will only grow as the Boomer generation reaches traditional retirement age. “As they get older, the first generation raised in the suburbs will still have to rely on their personal automobiles, or those of family and friends, to get around. Roads designed and built to reduce the risk of crashes will make them and everyone safer,” said Certner.

The Older Driver and Pedestrian Safety and Roadway Enhancement Act of 2009 will:
* Invest $500 million annually in roadway safety infrastructure to meet improved federal highway design handbook standards for older drivers and pedestrians, effectively making roadways across the nation safer for all Americans.
* Create a position of Special Assistant for Older Adult Safety and Mobility in the Office of the Secretary of Transportation to contribute an age related focus to DOT activities and programs related to transportation safety, research and services.
* Improve federal standards for roadway signs and road markings to accommodate the vision needs of an older population. The effect will be signs and road markings that are more visible for all.

“Rep. Altmire’s vision in understanding the needs of older Americans is truly inspirational,” said Wentz. “H.R. 3355 is a large step in the right direction in making our friends, parents, and grandparents as safe as possible on the road. On behalf of ATSSA, I commend Rep. Altmire for his leadership and commitment to America’s older citizens.”

ATSSA is an international trade association located in Fredericksburg, Va. Since 1969, ATSSA has represented companies and individuals in the traffic control and roadway safety industry. Over 1,600 ATSSA members provide the majority of features, services and devices used to make our nation's roadways safer. These include pavement markings, road signs, work zone traffic control devices, guardrail, and other roadside safety features.
 

AARP Executive Vice President John Rother issued the following statement in response to recent commentary by Betsy McCaughey in various media outlets on health care reform measures passed or currently being considered by Congress.

“Betsy McCaughey’s recent commentary on health care reform in various media outlets is rife with gross—and even cruel—distortions.

“Ms. McCaughey has again launched her customary broadside attack against comparative effectiveness research. She describes this term as ‘code’ for ‘limiting care based on a patient’s age.’ In fact the term for that is ‘age rating,’ a practice used by insurance companies to discriminate against older Americans against which AARP is vigorously fighting, and we look forward to her next column to help the cause.

“‘Comparative effectiveness research,’ on the other hand, is a technical term that just means giving doctors and patients the ability to compare different kinds of treatments to find out which one works best for which patient.

“Some estimates say that only about half of all therapies that patients receive have been backed up by head-to-head comparisons with alternatives. While our country spends more than $2 trillion a year on health care, we spend less than 0.1 percent on evaluating how that care works compared to other options.

“This research has been around (although sadly not enough) for decades, enjoying support from political leaders of both parties, doctors, patients, and consumer advocacy groups.

“The main opponents of this research are those groups with a vested interest in a health care system that wastes billions of dollars each year on ineffective or unnecessary drugs, treatments or tests. Given Ms. McCaughey’s position as a Director of a medical device producer, I would hope that any potential conflict of interest has not influenced her commentary.

“More concerning, Ms. McCaughey’s criticism misinterprets legislation that would actually help empower individuals and doctors to make their own choices on end-of-life care.

“This measure would allow Medicare to pay doctors for taking the time to talk with individuals about difficult end-of-life care decisions. It would help provide people with better information on the positives and negatives—both physical and financial—that different treatments can mean for them and their families.

“Facing a terminal disease or debilitating accident, some people will choose to take every possible life-saving measure in the hopes that treatment or even a cure will allow them more time with their families. Others will decide that additional treatment would impose too great a burden—emotional, physical and otherwise—on themselves and their families, declining extraordinary measures and instead choosing care to manage their discomfort. Either way, it should be their choice.

“This measure would not only help people make the best decisions for themselves, but also better ensure that their wishes are followed.

“To suggest otherwise is a gross, and even cruel, distortion—especially for any family that has been forced to make the difficult decisions on care for loved ones approaching the end of their lives.

“AARP is committed to improving the quality, effectiveness, and affordability of health care for our 40 million members and their families. We will fight any measure that would prevent individuals and their doctors from making their own health care decisions. We will also fight the campaign of misinformation that vested interests are using to try to scare older Americans in order to protect the status quo. Profits should never be allowed to come before people in this debate.”

 

AARP  proudly endorsed the bipartisan “Medicare Transitional Care Act,” being introduced this week by Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Susan Collins (R-ME). This critical legislation adds a follow-up care benefit to Medicare to ensure that people who leave the hospital get the care they need to stay healthy and avoid being readmitted. Such a benefit can help save some of the estimated $17 billion Medicare spends each year on preventable hospital readmissions.

“It’s unacceptable that 20 percent of people in Medicare who visit the hospital will return within a month, often because they aren’t getting the follow-up care they need,” said AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond. “We’re sending home too many people with a handful of prescriptions and no support. Something as simple as help to set up a medication schedule could be the difference between getting healthy or winding up back in a hospital bed.”

AARP has urged lawmakers to ensure that comprehensive health care reform includes a Medicare follow-up care benefit to help people safely return to their homes after a hospital stay, coordinate their health care needs and prevent unnecessary hospital readmissions. The legislation being introduced this week by Sens. Shaheen and Collins marks an important step toward a stronger, higher quality health care system.

The “Medicare Transitional Care Act” would create a new Medicare benefit to coordinate care during a person’s transition from a hospital to their home or other care settings. With help from a team of nurses, doctors and other professionals, patients and their caregivers would receive critical follow-up care, like instructions for taking their medications, a medical professional to attend follow-up appointments with their doctors, referrals for care, and help to find the equipment and services they may need.

LeaMond added: “We’re proud to support this crucial bipartisan legislation, and we look forward to working with Senators Shaheen and Collins to enact this benefit as a part of comprehensive health care reform. We simply cannot afford to keep wasting our health care dollars on preventable readmissions. This bill is a win-win that should keep people healthier and save money.”

AARP has also endorsed a bipartisan House companion bill, H.R. 2773, sponsored by Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Charles Boustany (R-LA).

For details on AARP’s health reform priorities, visit http://www.aarp.org/governmentwatch.

Earlier this month, Governor Rendell announced plans to raise the income limit for the Lottery-funded PACENET prescription drug benefit for older Pennsylvanians, providing help to an additional 30,000 people who have little or no drug coverage now.  

The Governor’s proposal would boost the PACENET income limits from $23,500 to $30,000 for an individual and from $31,500 to $40,000 for a couple.

Rendell would pay for the expansion by requiring pharmaceutical companies to give the state the same drug rebates it gives to the federal government's Medicaid program. The state would also begin compensating pharmacies for medications based on the price they actually paid for them, rather than the manufacturer's suggested retail price. Those changes would help generate roughly $60 million in savings, enough to cover the new enrollees.

AARP Pennsylvania praised the idea. Advocacy Manager Ray Landis said it targets a group of seniors who are finding that their incomes aren't the same as just a year or two ago. Their retirement investments have gone sour and many have taken part-time work to pay for their medications or to afford the more expensive Medicare Part D program, he added. "The money they have put away is not there anymore," Landis said. "This will allow more people to take advantage of the best drug assistance program in the United States."

Rendell hopes to have the PACENET expansion approved before the legislature breaks for the summer. For information about PACE and PACENET, visit the Department of Aging at www.aging.state.pa.us or call, toll-free, 1-800-225-7223.

Many Older Hispanics – the “invisible” Boomers – Face Workplace Challenges

• In 2006-2008, 15 percent of Hispanics ages 50-69 reported work disabilities, compared with 24 percent of non-Hispanic blacks and 14 percent of non-Hispanic whites.

• Approximately 3.2 million Hispanics ages 50-69 were employed in 2007, earning a total of $126 billion.

• At age 65, Hispanic men and women can expect to live three years longer than non-Hispanic whites and four years longer than non-Hispanic blacks.

• Develop recruiting materials in English and Spanish if an employer is open to hiring workers who are not fluent in English.

• Use media outlets and other recruiting channels that serve the Hispanic community.

• Implement retraining programs to help older workers in physically demanding jobs transition into positions that require less physical exertion.

• Consider offering educational opportunities to workers and job seekers who are good matches for certain career opportunities but who lack a few skills.  Such training could include English-as-a-Second language and skill training, the report suggested.

• Consider training for managers that encourages them to embrace workplace diversity and stresses the value that diverse viewpoints can provide an employer.