associated with the problems of social isolation and inadequate nutrition, a National Commission for Mental Health of the Aged be established. 6. That substantial funds be devoted to the support of basic and applied research as an investment for the future health and nutrition of the Nation. Since effective action programs are based on research findings, immediate action must be based on the best information currently available. However, it must be recognized that continued research on the basic nature of aging and its relation to nutrition is essential for progress in the future. Recommendation No. 5: NATIONAL CODE OF STANDARDS It is recommended: That persons and agencies providing residential care or home health care for any number of the aged be required to supply adequate nutrition and health services for their clientele and that to help insure this, the Federal Government establish a national code of health, nutrition, and personnel standards and use its powers to encourage each State to adopt and enforce this code. Recommendation No. 6: HOUSING AND DINING FACILITIES An effective meal delivery service for the older citizen, accompanied by opportunity for sociability, can be extended effectively on a workable neighborhood basis through the use of various facilities including particularly centers in housing developments located in strategic neighborhood areas. It is recommended: 1. That all housing programs for the elderly, no matter how financed or by whom sponsored, include meal service with proper nutrition, this recommendation to include those developments for the well elderly which also provide individual cooking facilities within their dwellings. Community spaces provided for such meal service be designed by or in cooperation with persons knowledgeable in food preparation and dining arrangements. 2. That in order to reach older people in the surrounding neighborhood, this service be extended to older people in the neighborhood and the planning and funding for this out reach service be reflected in all future plans for possible extension or modernization of existing facilities. 3. That the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development include in its programs for Senior Citizens one that responds to the needs of the more frail elderly, those who cannot shop and prepare meals, but who are not ill and do not need more costly and less socially desirable medical facilities. 4. That the Federal Government fund construction of neighborhood centers for the elderly which can provide services peculiar to the needs of older persons. 5. That research and demonstration programs jointly funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Administration on Aging be undertaken to bring about a closer relationship between housing design and construction and the services needed to round out a rewarding environment. Recommendation No. 7: TRANSPORTATION FOR THE AGED The older population in large part must depend on accessible and economic public transportation to reach services, including food services. Therefore, to overcome the effects of limited mobility, to assure continued access to the general community, to provide opportunity for a role in society befitting their years and physical condition. It is recommended: "That the U.S. Department of Transportation, in conjunction with the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, its Administration on Aging, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, seek ways of providing necessary transportation for the elderly and other disadvantaged groups who are not within reach of, or able to use normal public transportation (if it exists) in order to take advantage of nutrition, health and other services. Recommendation No. 8: PACKAGING AND LABEL ING It is recommended: 1. That the U.S. Government establish a mechanisma in collaboration with private industry for the development of economical, nutritious, easily prepared, attractivo und readily stored new lines of food products. While these would satisfy certain packaging requirements of the elderly, they should be available to all residents regardless of age. 2. That promotion of these new food products be accompanied by an education program geared to the needs of those seeking economical high quality nutrition. 3. That all packaged food products be labeled in clearly visible print with their nutrient contents translated into proportions of daily allowances of the four basic food groups. 4. That this labeling system not replace present ingredient labeling. 5. That the Federal Government launch a concentrated educational campaign against food faddism utilizing the new food lines, the education program and the proposed labeling system. Recommendation No. 9: SOIL BANK UTILIZATION FOR HOME GARDENS Many rural, landless families, suffering from malnutrition, live near farmland held in the Federal Soil Bank. It is recommended: That the Federal Soil Bank legislation be amended to entitle persons to raise foods for personal consumption on soil bank land. Recommendation No. 10: FUNDING It is recommended: 1. That as a sincere expression of the national commitment to solving the problems of nutrition and poor health among the elderly, the President vigorously support Federal action to provide adequate funds for immediate and realistic implementation of all the aforementioned recommendations. 2. That evaluation designed to insure the effi cient, effective utilization of these funds be incorporated into every program derived from these recommendations. Recommendation No. 11: IMPLEMENTATION It is recommended: 1. That action to implement each of the Panel's recommendations be initiated immediately. That the President immediately establish a mechanism to give leadership to their effective development and to the continued monitoring of progress on each recommendation. Responsibility for implementation of these recommendations should be turned over to existing agencies and the coordination and communication among these agencies guaranteed by authority exercised through the Office of the President of the United States. 3. That the forthcoming White House Conference on Aging (November 1971) include a review and evaluation of progress on each of these recommendations as part of the responsibilities of a Panel on Nutrition with the objective of providing recommendations for further action. COMMENTS OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION TASK FORCE PANEL 11-4: The Aging The task force felt that residency and citizenship requirements for old age assistance should be done away with. The task force also felt social security benefits should be fully retroactive back to the time of first eligibility for those belatedly applying for benefits. Both of these suggestions were ignored by the Panel on Aging. 5 President's Task Force on Aging Recommendation 23 Nutrition Programs for the Elderly We recommend that the President direct the Administration on Aging and the Department of Agriculture to develop a program of technical assistance and, when necessary, financial assistance, to local groups so that such groups can provide daily meals to ambulatory older persons in group settings and to shut-ins at home. Senator EAGLETON. I will now call Senator Kennedy, from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. STATEMENT OF HON. EDWARD M. KENNEDY, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF MASSACHUSETTS Senator KENNEDY. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. I want to extend our appreciation to Mr. Drucker for permitting me to sandwich my testimony and my introduction to Mrs. Ella Reason into his comments. Thank you very much for making that adjustment. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the distinguished chairman of the Subcommittee on Aging for his strong support for S. 1163, the legislation authorizing nutrition programs for the elderly, which I introduced and which he, along with 24 other Senators, have cosponsored. I believe these hearings will clearly underline the compelling need for this program. I also take great pleasure in introducing to the subcommittee Mrs. Ella Reason, who is project director for the Council of Elders, Inc., of Roxbury, Mass., which has conducted the nutrition pilot program in Massachusetts. Mr. Chairman, the Council of Elders program has been tremendously effective and has stimulated the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to adopt its own permanent plan to assist the elderly poor. Currently, there are 23 Massachusetts communities which offer hot meals daily to elderly persons. The demand from other communities is double the available State funds, and the State Council on Aging estimates that many times that number would have applied if any hope at all existed for funding. The 32 pilot programs operated by the Administration on Aging under title IV of the Older Americans Act have amply demonstrated the need and feasibility for their expansion. However, we now are seeing perhaps the most blatant example of misplaced priorities in the decision of this administration to terminate these pilot programs. Its failure to endorse continued funding of the 18 on-going nutritional programs for an additional year is simply not understandable. The total cost would have been $1.7 million. The amendment to add those funds was offered by Senator Percy and the distinguished chairman, and I was a cosponsor. It was passed by the Senate. Unfor tunately, administration opposition assured its deletion in the conference on the second supplemental appropriation bill. I want to emphasize that this occurred while the administration supported a supplemental appropriation of $2.8 million for exhibits at an International Aeronautical Exposition at Dulles Airport. I am hopeful that the Congress will remedy this situation by early passage of permanent legislation aimed at alleviating the critical nutritional condition of the elderly poor. Toynbee once commented that the quality and vigor of a society can best be measured "by the respect and care given its elderly citizens." At this time, the United States would be judged harshly by that criteria. The elderly in America are the Nation's most neglected minority group. The Senate Special Committee on Aging documented the deteriorating economic condition of the poor last year. While the number of poor under 65 years of age was decreasing, the number of elderly poor rose from 4.6 million to 4.8 million. Older Americans in the United States are more than twice as likely to be poor as younger persons. One out of every five individuals 65 and older resides in poverty. Over the past 10 years, the focus of the Nation has been on the disadvantaged but the plight of the elderly poor has failed to awaken an adequate response from either public authorities or private institutions. In 1959, Americans 65 and older comprised 15.1 percent of all citizens existing below the poverty line. By 1969, that proportion had reached the 20 percent mark. When the depressing economic condition of the elderly poor is understood, it becomes much easier to comprehend why they suffer malnutrition and live on permanently deficient diets. They have low incomes, inadequate kitchen facilities, and a budget in which food is the only element that can be cut. They lack mobility. They lack nutritional education. They are unaware of the foods they ought to purchase, and, if they were, they usually are unable to prepare them as they should. The loneliness and sense of alienation of single elderly persons removes the incentive to plan and prepare nutritious meals. These factors combine to produce a way of life which incorporates malnutrition and persistent physical and mental deterioration. For the elderly, even with the recent increases proposed, social security, welfare, and other retirement benefits are generally inade 68-179 0-71-10 |