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Legislature makes it easier for families to care for loved ones

Legislature makes it easier for families to care for loved ones linda-fitzgerald.jpg
PRIME – September 2014 By Linda F. Fitzgerald AARP State President Massachusetts lightened the load for family caregivers on Aug. 5 when Governor Deval Patrick signed the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act (UAGPPJA) into law. The law takes effect on Nov. 5, 90 days from the date that the Governor signed the bill. Massachusetts has now joined 38 other states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico in adopting a model set of rules to make it easier for family caregivers to provide care across state lines. The Uniform Act outlines a procedure for transferring a guardianship or conservatorship to another state and for accepting a transfer, helping to eliminate the expense and wait. UAGPPJA helps to facilitate enforcement of guardianship and protective orders from other states by authorizing registration in Massachusetts. AARP Massachusetts is grateful to the State Legislature and to Gov. Patrick for passing the Uniform Act and also thanks its members across the state for their efforts in contacting legislators to urge passage of UAGPPJA. Future of Social Security, Medicare In other news, the Trustees of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds recently issued a report on the current and projected financial status of the two programs. While Social Security remains strong and can continue to pay full benefits for nearly two decades, modest changes must eventually be made to ensure current and future generations of Social Security beneficiaries receive what they’ve earned. The newly released annual reports for 2014 paint an uncertain picture of the programs’ future when a projected large number of baby boomers enter retirement in future years. By 2033, the number of older Americans will increase from 46.6 million today to over 77 million. Medicare is strong and will avoid insolvency until 2030, the program’s trustees said, a longer projected life span fueled by drops in healthcare spending. The latest projections push the life of the Medicare trust fund back four years later than a year ago. The trustees’ new projections found fewer changes for Social Security, projecting that reserves for the retirement and disability trust funds will run dry in the mid-2030s – the same as last year’s estimates. However, Social Security’s disability trust fund faces a financial shortfall when reserves are estimated to run out in 2016 – that is, unless the combined resources of the Social Security Trust Funds are rebalanced by lawmakers. AARP believes that by improving care coordination and better use of technology, controlling high drug costs, reducing unnecessary services and other wasteful spending, and targeting fraud and abuse, this country would improve its health care system as a whole. That’s why AARP advocates for common sense changes that can ensure affordable health care for American families while improving the quality and delivery of care for today’s seniors and future generations. Linda F. Fitzgerald is the volunteer state president of AARP Massachusetts, which serves more than 800,000 members age 50 and older in the Bay State. Connect with AARP Massachusetts online at www.aarp.org/ma ; www.facebook.com/AARPMA and www.twitter.com/AARPMA. Bookmark and Share