Leading Insights across All Aging Issues—All in One Place

As I have told my team, the AARP Public Policy Institute needs to be more than a think tank. We are a Think and Do Tank. We produce leading research on aging issues, yet we also are action-oriented, from engaging consumers on the topic of prediabetes to producing videos that help family caregivers perform tasks.

We also have a unique vantage point in that we cover a full range of aging issues, from financial security and retirement savings to livable communities, the health care workforce, and Medicare policy. It is all interconnected and, from our vantage point, we understand that.

Now we have a new platform to better enable you to see that interconnectedness—and how it applies to your work, your life, your communities, and your interests. The appropriately named Policy Plus Action is our new Public Policy Institute newsletter, and it’s available to anyone who has an interest in the issues that matter to older adults. My colleague Carl Levesque, who edits the newsletter, put it well when he said, “The thing I’m most excited about is providing an opportunity for the reader to see the entire scope of the issues we cover, all in one publication.”

Each month, the e-newsletter will highlight important information coming both from inside and outside the walls of PPI. The publication design features user-friendly sections that allow readers to get both a broad-stroke look at aging issues in just a few seconds as well as a deep dive into any given topic. Those sections include:

News and Features. This section provides a look at the latest developments in the whole range of areas PPI covers: financial security, family caregiving, retirement saving, livable communities, long-term services and supports, health security, Medicare, the Center to Champion Nursing in America—the list goes on. Typically written by PPI experts (but also sometimes featuring guest authors), these articles often link to related reports that you can access for a deeper dive.

Events. As a “think-and-do tank,” PPI regularly convenes experts, policy makers, and other stakeholders to tackle any number of aging issues. The newsletter’s events section, provides information on public happenings—both in-person and virtual, allowing for access from anywhere. It also features information that comes out of past events; live-stream video recordings, for example, enable people to take in key information even if they were not able to attend an event.

In the News. PPI is always in touch with aging-issue news and developments (and sometimes its experts are “in the news” themselves). Here you can gain access to articles and news developments of note found in outlets beyond PPI.

In these sections will be content from our multi-platform offerings—videos, valuable infographics, reports, and more. If you work on a specific aging issue, the publication will surely highlight the interconnectedness of issues beyond your field. If you are an interested consumer, the newsletter is sure to keep you informed, allowing you to actively participate in local, state, and national dialogue.

Policy Plus Action promises to be a valuable asset for understanding aging issues in this country and even beyond. We invite you to sign up to receive issues.

Susan Reinhard is AARP senior vice president and the director of the AARP Public Policy Institute and chief strategist at the Center to Champion Nursing in America. Her areas of expertise include aging, family caregiving research, Medicare, and Medicaid.