The New York State Committee of One Hundred for the 1961 White House Conference on Aging held its final state-wide meeting September 19-20, 1960. This was the culmination of a year of fruitful activity throughout the State. More than 2,000 citizens of New York State attended nine regional meetings and two state-wide meetings arranged by the State Committee of One Hundred. They represented all geographic areas and included lay citizens, professional people, and public officials interested and knowledgeable in the subject matters discussed. Information about these meetings appears in Appendix II.

At the regional meetings, more than 400 recommendations were made concerning the needs of the aging in New York State and elsewhere in the nation.

Copies of these recommendations were sent to each member of the State Committee with the request that he vote for the recommendations he favored.

After minimizing the amount of duplication, 236 recommendations remained.

A report on the results of this individual balloting was forwarded to each member, indicating which recommendations had been approved and which had not. Members were also advised that they would have the opportunity at the final meting of the State Committee to act collectively on the recommendations that had been approved by individual voting, along with those recommendations that had failed by one vote to receive a majority.

These 118 adopted recommendations were submitted for action by the State Committee. A total of 113 of these regional recommendations were adopted. In addition, the State Committee adopted five more recommendations on its own initiative.

The recommendations range from those of a very specific nature to others concerned with broad policy issues. They fall into categories involving action by the federal, state, and local governments, as well as by individuals and voluntary agencies. They cover ten different subject areas-economic security, health and medical care, housing, social services, free-time activities, education, religion,

professional personnel, research, and community organization. At the same time, because of the interlocking nature of the problems, the recommendations in a number of instances affect more than one subject and involve several levels of government and the individual. For this reason, a clear-cut classification is not always possible.

PRINCIPLES AGREED UPON

The detailed findings and recommendations are presented in the succeeding chapters and are introduced by a general discussion of the problem involved. Overall, the great majority of the proposals are focused on the three urgent needs of adequate income, medical care, and housing. They indicate agreement by the State Committee on some broad principles:

A. The problems of an advancing life span are increasing, but it is important that the people who have grown old be not considered as a group apart. Wherever possible, the needed special provisions for older age people should be made in the context of general programs for all the people.

B. The needs of older people should be met so far as possible through voluntary group action with public agencies acting in a supplementary role. Individual initiative and responsibility at every age must be encouraged and supported in our democratic society.

C. In all phases of activity, unfair discrimination against older people should be eliminated. This can be done by both legislation and by the educational programs of voluntary groups and individuals.

B. As part of this educational process, all types of community organizations and appropriate government departments should develop integrated and inclusive programs for older people.

E. A concerted effort by the communities and government departments is needed to train and recruit professional personnel in medical, health education and welfare fields, with special training in problems of the aging.

F. The acute problem of medical care for older persons requires expanded programs by the Federal and State governments and immediate further study and consideration of the best methods of financing their cost. These principles, it is hoped, will underlie or guide future action in the field of the aging. Particular needs and specific solutions to them will change from year to year, and government officials and voluntary groups must continually experiment with new approaches not only to developing problems but to the old ones.

The special value of the citizen State Committee is to enhance public interest in a problem of major and growing importance and to give to those responsible for action a feeling of the framework within which specific solutions should be worked out.

SUMMARY RESOLUTION

The extensive deliberations of the State Committee at the regional meetings and at the statewide meetings have served this democratic purpose well, and the State Committee has expressed the hope that its findings will prove helpful. At its closing session, it adopted the following sum

mary resolution as recommendation No. 1 and commended it to all who have an interest in, or a responsibility for, the aging.

Resolved: That the New York State Committee of One Hundred for the 1961 White House Conference on Aging wishes to go on record as expressing our concern for the betterment of the lot of the aging in the following areas:

Economic security Medical care Housing

Productive living

We ask our leaders in government and all those in public life charged with the framing of legislation or the setting up of agencies, and also those engaged in appropriate private philanthropic or educational organizations, to study our detailed recommendations in the hope that they may be helpful in implementing our broad intent - that of caring for our aging, at the appropriate level— local, county, State or federal.