Six Decades Strong, Older Americans Act Faces Funding Uncertainty

“As America’s older population grows, so too must the resources to help them remain independent and live at home,” wrote Bill Sweeney, AARP’s senior vice president of government affairs, in the letter. “OAA programs are cost-effective investments that serve the needs of older Americans while deferring or eliminating the need for costly institutionalization.”

The 2025 reauthorization measure was reintroduced in June by a bipartisan group of senators.

The federal reconciliation legislation known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” signed by President Donald Trump on July 4, funds mandatory programs. But OAA programs are discretionary, meaning they will be paid for by separate legislation for the Department of Health and Human Services.

Congress will need to pass a new funding bill by Oct. 1 to prevent a lapse in funding. If that lapse takes place, state budgets could be strained to fund OAA programs.

Older Americans Act over time

The OAA became law on July 14, 1965. It was among President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society initiatives that were part of the social legislation passed over the past century, such as the Social Security Act of 1935. The initiatives garnered bipartisan federal support for healthy and independent aging in the U.S. and included 1965’s Medicare and Medicaid Act. ​​But the OAA does something unique that advocates say must be protected, as funding has stagnated in recent decades despite a rapidly growing older population. At the time of the bill’s signing, roughly 1 in 10 Americans were 65 or older. Today, that figure is closer to 1 in 6. ​

“To have a special carve-out that’s categorically in the name of aging in place is something that only the Older Americans Act does,” says Emily Greenfield, director of Rutgers University’s Hub for Aging Collaboration. “In the context of structural ageism and underfunding for social services more generally, it’s really something special that the Older Americans Act provides.” ​

​OAA programs tackle many health issues that can make maintaining independence difficult for adults as they age. Self-management of chronic disease, fall prevention, home care, adult day services and assisted transportation empower individuals so they can receive care in the community where they live, keeping them connected to their support network. ​

​“The Older Americans Act really uniquely funds community-based services on their own terms,” Greenfield says. ​

​The law also ensures there is steady support for older adults when disaster strikes. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, the OAA leveraged flexible funding to address food shortages through grocery delivery and shelf-stable meals. ​

​Advocates say the OAA can also help fill gaps in care for individuals who can’t meet eligibility standards set by other federal programs, like Medicaid or nutrition assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. 

​“From home-delivered meals to job training and caregiver support, OAA programs remain vital as our aging population grows,” says Megan O’Reilly, vice president for health and family for AARP Government Affairs.

Medicaid is a major provider of nursing home care and home- and community-based services, but the OAA, while smaller, can reach those with financial resources just above Medicaid income thresholds. ​​

In 2021, AARP’s Public Policy Institute found that more than 10 million people received OAA services. These services are coordinated through a network of hundreds of federal, state, tribal and local agencies that also use state and local funding to carry out the OAA programs. ​​

The intent of the law was to provide a flexible approach to giving communities the resources they need to respond to issues locally. 

​​“Programs like Social Security and Medicare helped with income and health care, but the OAA was the first time the federal government recognized that supporting older adults is something our communities should plan for,” says Michelle Matter, director of aging for San Diego State University’s Center for Excellence in Aging & Longevity. 

“That shift, from charity to public responsibility, was a radical idea for its time, and it continues to shape how we think about aging with dignity and choice,” she says.