Unprecedented Challenges, Unwavering Optimism: Meeting the Needs of Older Americans

In 2022 the Alliance continued to raise awareness of sarcopenia. Our public service announcement (PSA) Sarcopenia: Taking Charge of Your Muscle Health as You Age garnered more than 1 million views across all platforms. We led a survey of clinicians on sarcopenia practices which was accepted for publication in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS), and served as subject matter experts for an awareness effort being led by the Office of Women’s Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Visit AgingInMotion.org.

Alliance leadership continued to serve as a co-convenor of the COVID-19 Vaccine Education & Equity Project (CVEEP), which hosted informational webinars for the public and press with senior officials from the FDA, CDC, as well as experts on vaccinology, health equity, maternal health and pediatrics, and older adult care. The CVEEP and Our Best Shots campaigns released issue briefs on vaccine equity, launched educational PSAs, participated in satellite and radio media tours and spearheaded a sustained large-scale social media effort.

In reaction to the spike in COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in the fall, we created and promoted new educational resources on the importance of COVID-19 boosters and returning to routine vaccinations, RSV in older adults, and the revised recommendations to the adult vaccine schedule. A radio media tour reached more than 11 million listeners, TV PSAs generated more than 12 million impressions, and digital outreach produced more than 600,000 video views.

Visit AgingResearch.org/OurBestShot.

The 15th ACT-AD/FDA Allies meeting, which annually provides an intimate forum to discuss key issues in dementia research, was held on November 16. This year’s event included an NIH update on the National Alzheimer’s Project Act research agenda, and sessions focused on the underpinnings of neuropsychiatric symptoms of dementia and how the gut microbiome may contribute to the development of dementia. The meeting featured an informative fireside chat with Dr. Billy Dunn, Director of the FDA Center for Neuroscience.

Visit ACT-AD.org.

The Project PAUSE Coalition continued legislative and regulatory efforts to ensure that all individuals in long-term care settings (e.g., Skilled Nursing Facility, nursing home, assisted-living setting) who have Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and other neuropsychiatric conditions receive high-quality, patient-centered, appropriate care and treatment without facing stigma or barriers. In 2022, Project PAUSE secured language in the Senate appropriations bill, submitted comments to the NIH for its 2023 research care summit, and advanced discussions with CMS on introducing complementary nursing home quality measures to measure rates of clinically appropriate antipsychotic utilization.

Visit AgingResearch.org/Project PAUSE.

The Alliance led a coalition of over 20 organizations to advocate for Medicare beneficiary access to FDA-approved Alzheimer’s treatments, including meetings with CMS, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the White House. A “Rally for Access” was held across from HHS headquarters in Washington, DC, where nearly 100 advocates gathered to protest the treatment rationing coverage policy proposed by CMS. Work continues to fight against the access barriers resulting from Medicare’s increasing use of “coverage with evidence development” restrictions that limit beneficiary access, including the development of legislation to create a presumption of coverage for FDA-approved therapeutics.

We produced Shake the Stigma of Neuropsychiatric Symptoms, an educational film on how diseases and injuries of the brain commonly cause serious and devastating mood and emotional symptoms that are a source of stigma and burden but can be treated. This film and its sister film on Alzheimer’s disease reached more than 500,000 people and were recognized with prestigious Gold Telly Awards.

Project LOOP helped lead the way on passage of legislation that creates a $2,000 annual limit on Medicare beneficiaries’ out-of-pocket (OOP) expenses for Part D prescription drugs and the ability to pay OOP costs over time in zero-interest payment installments. In the fall, the Alliance also released a research analysis illustrating how a $35 maximum copayment amount would positively impact beneficiaries and medication adherence, with a limited impact on federal budgetary spending. Additionally, the Alliance advocated for legislative passage of provisions that, starting on January 1, 2023, require Medicare and Medicaid to fully cover all vaccines with no out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries, even in the deductible phase of benefits.

The 2022 Talk NERDY to Me Training Program was held over two weeks in October. There were 28 student participants and 11 presenters/researchers/teachers. Participants learned about patient-centered outcomes research and how to critically analyze research, and engaged directly with researchers focused on aging-related health conditions. Several meaningful collaborations grew out of the training, particularly in relation to chronic pain research and the addition of marginalized populations in Alzheimer’s and other dementia research.

Visit AgingResearch.org/NERDY.

In its 6th year, the Alliance was joined on February 22nd by116 partners around the world dedicated to improving earlier detection and intervention of heart valve disease. The campaign and its partners were able to reach more than 11 million listeners through a radio media tour, 7 million via TV impressions, 2.7 million in video views, and resulted in 50,000 social media engagements. A virtual conference and dozens of partner events also spread the campaign messages.

Visit ValveDiseaseDay.org.

A new workshop kit on safe pain management includes all the resources community leaders need to host educational events—whether in-person or online. Resources include scripts, tips on promotion, participant brochures, videos, pre- and post-surveys, and more.

Because mental illness can present differently in older adults, the Alliance released three new tip sheets for health care providers and the public. The tip sheets focus on screening, treatment, and important mental health conversations for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, depression and suicide, and substance use disorders and mental health.

In June, This is Growing Old reached a milestone with the release of our 50th episode in June. Our engaging guests covered topics spanning from how to protect against scams, to important health policy issues impacting older adults, to the experience of family caregiving. We launched a visual component to the content: all episodes after are available to watch on YouTube in addition to your favorite podcast streaming platform. In 2023 we will embark on an audit of the podcast to enhance access and offerings. Stay tuned!

A new and improved AgingResearch.org was redesigned as a catalyst to provide essential and easy-to-navigate information to our audiences. Our new website meets the highest industry standards for accessibility including mobile device compatibility. Check it out!