Staying Fit
Mom always said not to brag. But she probably wouldn’t mind our saying we are proud of what AARP accomplished in 2017. We helped defeat harmful health care legislation in Congress and fought age discrimination in the workplace. We lent a hand to those in need, sounded the alarm about scams and helped our members navigate important life decisions. Along the way, we showed them a little fun, too. As the year winds down, we want to share some of the achievements that we hope make you proud to be an AARP member.
1. AARP repeatedly mobilized its members and Americans 50-plus to urge Congress to oppose harmful health care legislation that would have resulted in higher premiums for older people and cuts in benefits, including Medicare and Medicaid. Our efforts generated 300,000 calls and roughly 1.4 million letters and emails.
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2. New York became the first state to join the new AARP Network of Age-Friendly States and Territories.
3. We won a court challenge of federal regulations that allowed employers to coerce workers into sharing private medical and genetic information with their workplace wellness programs.
4. AARP Foundation Experience Corps volunteers contributed about 400,000 hours helping over 31,000 students improve their reading.
5. Following hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, more than $5 million was donated to nonprofits by the charitable AARP Foundation.
6. AARP Foundation Tax-Aide volunteers helped 2.5 million people file tax returns, generating $1.4 billion in refunds and more than $220 million in tax credits.
7. We launched The Girlfriend, an e-magazine for women; produced 16 books; and published special magazines on health and fraud.
8. AARP Foundation organized over 7,700 volunteers to pack roughly 4 million meals for struggling older adults nationwide.
9. Our Fraud Watch Network videos helped over 36 million people learn how to protect themselves from scams; 1.8 million of them were warned about the Equifax security breach and charity scams related to Hurricane Harvey. Volunteers handled over 15,000 inquiries to the network’s helpline, and we conducted over 1,600 fraud-fighting events.