The AARP Public Policy Institute's nonpartisan policy analysis focuses on issues of critical importance to older Americans and draws on the work of experts across the ideological spectrum.

June 2020 Employment Data Digest

The latest monthly digest of employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) examines the findings from the Employment Situation Report. It takes a closer look at employment data for people ages 55 and over, including labor force participation, employment rates, and duration of unemployment.  

How Does Earnings Inequality Affect Social Security Financing?

Earnings inequality accounts for a considerable portion of Social Security’s fiscal challenges. This report found that if 90 percent of earnings had been subject to Social Security payroll taxes since 1983 the system’s long-term financing gap would be 25 percent lower today and the life of the combined trust funds would last an additional four years above current Social Security projections.  

The Role of Employer Repayment Programs in Tackling Student Loan Debt

As student loan debt becomes a growing concern across generations, a small but growing number of employers now offer student loan repayment assistance as a key employee benefit. This report examines the different approaches employers have taken, and what they mean for borrowers.

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Medicare Beneficiaries' Out-of-Pocket Spending for Health Care

This report provides detailed information on how much people with traditional Medicare pay out-of-pocket for health care. 

Medicare Financial Outlook: What Do Trust Fund Solvency Projections Mean?

In their 2020 annual report, the Medicare Trustees estimate that in 2026 Medicare’s Hospital Insurance (or Part A) trust fund will become “insolvent”—a term that can be misleading when taken out of context. This report explains what exactly Medicare Trust Fund solvency means, puts the current projections for the trust fund’s financial outlook into perspective, and shows why Medicare is not “going broke” and does not need a drastic change.  

The Affordable Care Act and Older Adults

A decade ago the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law. Two new AARP Public Policy Institute fact sheets look at how the ACA has significantly improved coverage for older adults ages 50 to 64 who purchase coverage on their own in the nongroup (individual) health insurance market.

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Long-Term Services & Supports State Scorecard

A State Scorecard on Long-Term Services and Supports for Older Adults, People with Physical Disabilities, and Family Caregivers

Recognition of Family Caregivers in Managed Long-Term Services and Supports

Based on a study of managed long-term services and supports (MLTSS) programs, this report examines provisions in MLTSS contracts that are important for the support of family caregivers. The study comprised the review of 31 MLTSS programs for older adults and adults with physical disabilities in 23 states in 2019.

Fast-tracking Approval for Publicly Funded LTSS: Presumptive Eligibility

Part of the Long-Term Services & Supports State Scorecard Promising Practices, this paper examines Presumptive Eligibility programs in five states -- Michigan, Ohio, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington – comparing key features and making recommendations for effective programs that increase access to Long-Term Services and Supports. 

Long-Term Services and Supports

In 2018, about 14 million adults of all ages needed long-term services and supports (LTSS). This fact sheet takes a closer look at what LTSS encompass, who needs these services, who provides care and where it’s provided, what paid LTSS cost, and who pays for LTSS.

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Caregiving in the United States 2020

First conducted in 1997 by the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP, Caregiving in the U.S. 2020 update presents a portrait of unpaid family caregivers. Family caregivers now encompass more than one in five Americans. The study also reveals that family caregivers are in worse health compared to five years ago. 

Valuing the Invaluable 2019 Update: Charting a Path Forward

Part of a series of papers on the economic value of family caregiving, this report updates national and individual state estimates of the economic value of family caregiving using the most current data available. In 2017, about 41 million family caregivers in the United States provided an estimated 34 billion hours of care to an adult with limitations in daily activities. The estimated economic value of their unpaid contributions was approximately $470 billion. 

Home Alone Revisied: Family Caregivers Providing Complex Chronic Care

The role of many family caregivers has dramatically expanded to include performing medical/nursing tasks once provided only in hospitals, such as managing  medications, wound care, and giving injections. This report exdamined what family caregivers who perform medical/nursing tasks experience and takes a closer look at specific difficult tasks,such as managing incontinence, pain, and special diets. It also offered greater attention toresources and outcomes as well as family caregiver experiences by gender, generation, and culture. 

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