The BDN Opinion section operates independently and does not set news policies or contribute to reporting or editing articles elsewhere in the newspaper or on bangordailynews.com
Susan Collins, a Republican, is Maine’s senior U.S. senator.
This column is adapted from a Sept. 3 floor speech by Sen. Collins.
This week, I introduced bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize the only federally funded program specifically designed to develop a health care workforce focused on the care of older Americans. The Geriatrics Workforce Improvement Act would reauthorize two programs important to training specialists who care for our older adults: the Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program and the Geriatric Academic Career Awards program.
The number of Americans aged 65 and older is growing. In 2020, there were just three states in which senior citizens outnumbered children: Maine, Vermont, and Florida. Today, there are 11 states that have more seniors than children, and Maine has the oldest population in the nation. The percentage of the U.S. population over 65 rose by 3 percent to 18 percent in just one year.
The United States is facing a shortage of geriatric health professionals and direct service workers to support our aging population. The American Geriatrics Society projects that we will be short 1,740 geriatricians by 2036. Fewer than 7,000 of our nation’s nearly one million physicians are board-certified geriatricians. We need to train 1,600 geriatricians per year over the next nine years to fill this shortage. Complicating this shortfall is the fact that as many as 90 percent of older adults have or will develop one or more chronic health conditions. Many chronic conditions, multiple medications, and changes that occur in aging make caring for older adults complex and challenging. In any given year, it is expected that 30 percent of older adults will require specialized geriatric care.
Today, there are 42 Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Programs (GWEPs) in 37 states. I am pleased that, since the last reauthorization in 2019, this list has expanded to include the first GWEP in Maine, which is located at the University of New England. For Maine, with an aging population of more than a quarter million Mainers over the age of 65, and only 36 geriatricians, there is an acute need to train more geriatric health professionals and direct service workers quickly to meet the growing demand.
Maine’s program, known as AgingME, has brought much needed support to communities and families throughout the state. For example, AgingME has worked with other training and geriatrics-serving partners to develop a post-graduate credentialing program in geriatrics. Students who participated in the program completed over 2,000 hours of training in medically underserved communities and rural areas of Maine.
AgingME also worked to increase the number of community-based learning programs, such as falls prevention education programs in rural areas, and to connect family caregivers with resources for Alzheimer’s and related dementias through its website and through partnerships with Area Agencies on Aging.
Nationally, the geriatric workforce program has produced significant outcomes. In 2022, the most recent reported year, geriatric workforce enhancement programs trained nearly 72,000 students, professionals, patients, caregivers, and faculty. These programs were also able to offer faculty development training programs and activities, provide outreach and education to families and caregivers on care delivery for older adults, and train patients in self-management. More than 2.2 million individuals have been trained through these programs, of whom 57 percent were patients and caregivers. Approximately a third of courses offered focused on Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Patients and caregivers also took courses on other topics related to the health needs of older adults, such as geriatric health, emergency response training, and community health.
Our bill would also reauthorize the geriatric career advancement award program. Established in 1998, this program was created to increase the number of faculty engaged in geriatric education. Transitioning from clinical training and practice into an academic faculty role is challenging, and requires gaining new skills as an educator, skills not typically taught in clinical training programs. Geriatric academic career awards support early career development for emerging leaders by providing funding that supports their effort to develop skills as an educator in geriatrics.
The Geriatrics Workforce Improvement Act would reauthorize the Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) and the Geriatric Academic Career Awards Program (GACA) at a combined $48.2 million per year over the next five years. Together, these programs will continue to train the current workforce and family caregivers, while developing a cadre of emerging leaders in geriatric education, in a variety of disciplines.
In doing both, we will help ensure that aging Americans will be cared for by a health care workforce specifically trained to meet their unique and complex health needs for decades to come. This will lead to improved care for older Americans, while saving valuable resources and reducing unnecessary costs.
