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Politics & Government

GOP Plans Would Gut Senior Programs, Says Whitehouse

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) pledged to support reauthorization of the Older Americans Act at a panel hearing at the Johnston Senior Center.

Senior programs should be preserved from Republican attempts to stop the reauthorization of the Older Americans Act, which is set to expire later this year. The OAA, first passed in 1965, provides federal assistance programs to seniors.

More than 100 seniors, many of whom are among the 135,000 members of the Rhode Island American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), attended the hearing at the .

In his opening statement, Whitehouse praised Johnston Mayor Joseph M. Polisena, stating: “He takes second place to none in advocating for seniors – especially his Johnston seniors.”

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The senator also said it is important to defend the progress already made by the federal programs.

“Social Security has paid every dime owed to every eligible beneficiary with absolute solvency. Over 200,000 Rhode Islanders depend on Social Security to make ends meet,” Whitehouse said.

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Other panelists included Edwin Walker, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Program Operations at the Department of Health and Human Services Administration on Aging; Rhode Island Let. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts a long-time advocate of health care quality control; and Christopher Koller, Rhode Island’s first health insurance commissioner.

All of the expert testimonials concluded that alterations to the budget should not include any kind of modifications to the social security or Medicare system.

The second panel presented testimony from Kathleen Connell, who is the AARP-RI Senior State Director, and Audrey Brett, a concerned Middletown resident who is a recipient of Social Security and Medicare benefits.

Members of the second panel echoed Whitehouse's praise of the OAA. Connell’s testimony broke down, in tangible terms, what this means for Rhode Island’s senior community. Audrey Brett voiced her concerns with current Republican moves to privatize social security and Medicare benefits.

After the hearing, Johnston seniors spoke about what they liked about Sen. Whitehouse’s approach, and whether this answered their questions or quelled their concerns.

“I had questions, and most of them were raised in the board and answered,” Dr. Anthony Regine, president of the RI-AARP said. “As president, I was interested in this position because I’ve noticed the struggles people have in managing their care. I know there are three things that people want to know: Is my income from social security safe? Will I have adequate health care coverage? and Will I have a safe and secure place to live?”

Johnston resident Algeria Vaughn-Bailey said the government needs to focus more on adequately funding the programs to ensure that seniors are safe.

“They [the government] keep cutting, keep cutting. No increases in two years. I think we have to stop being the short end of the stick and get what we need to keep ourselves going,” Vaughn-Bailey remarked. “Sen. Whitehouse is doing a fine job and though he didn’t address anything specific for me, there was a sincere testimony from everyone and I appreciate that.”

Robert Chaves noted that there are mountains of paperwork for him to fill out and he will appreciate any consideration for a care coordinator.

“I didn’t have any specific concerns, but it will be great to have a care coordinator. I fill out too many forms and sign my name so many times I feel like a movie star,” said Chaves.

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