How AARP is Working for You

AARP has long fought to protect older adults from financial exploitation — which has more than doubled since the start of the pandemic, with the average victim losing $120,000, according to an AARP report.

That’s why we wrote to congressional lawmakers this month in support of the Senior Security Act of 2023, which would devote new resources to tackling the problem.

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We applaud the U.S. Supreme Court for upholding the right of nursing home residents on Medicaid to sue government-run facilities for allegedly violating their rights. 

The Supreme Court decision “is a major victory for nursing facility residents because it reaffirms their ability to enforce their rights under the Federal Nursing Home Reform Act, including their right to be free of illegal chemical restraints and illegal discharges,” AARP Foundation senior attorney Maame Gyamfi said in a statement.  

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When Nebraskans passed a ballot initiative last year to require all voters to show photo ID, we sprang into action to make sure voting remained easy and accessible for older residents.

Thanks in part to our efforts, a bill to implement the requirement, signed June 1 by Gov. Jim Pillen, preserves the ability to vote by mail and allows a wide variety of acceptable identification — including expired licenses, military IDs and nursing home documents with a photo.

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Connecticut voters can cast their ballots early for the first time in 2024, thanks to an AARP-backed early voting bill approved by state lawmakers. 

The bill, which Gov. Ned Lamont signed Wednesday, comes after voters overwhelmingly passed a constitutional amendment last November to allow early voting — one of several big wins for AARP in our push to make voting easier.  

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Nearly 8,000 older adults in Louisiana are waiting for services to help them remain in their homes as they age — with wait times as long as 10 years.

AARP has been working to change that. We scored a major victory last week when lawmakers unanimously passed a bill to establish a funding source dedicated to keeping older adults in their homes as long as possible.

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We’re thrilled that our advocacy helped pass legislation in Minnesota that will allow retirees to keep more of their Social Security income.

On May 21, state lawmakers passed a bill that will eliminate the state tax on Social Security benefits for three-quarters of the state’s recipients. People with taxable incomes up to $78,000, or $100,000 for a couple, would be exempt from paying state taxes on their benefits under the legislation, which Gov. Tim Walz signed on May 24.

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In 2021, nearly 20 percent of women, compared to 12 percent of men, had less than $10,000 in retirement savings, and 28 percent more women than men had less than $50,000 in retirement savings.

The gender pay gap, women’s workforce trajectories that are often interrupted by caregiving, and growth in female labor force participation in the gig economy are all factors contributing to the disparity. Coupled with women’s longer life spans, the low savings rates are a pressing policy challenge that needs to be addressed.

Interventions such as state-facilitated Auto IRA programs offer an important step forward. 

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The average family caregiver spends an estimated $7,200 a year on expenses related to their duties, according to AARP research. And that’s on top of the emotional and physical challenges that often come with providing unpaid care for an older loved one. 

So we commend the Oklahoma Legislature for passing an AARP-backed caregiver tax credit bill to ease that financial burden. The bill became law on Friday without Gov. Kevin Stitt's signature.

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