THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, December 2, 1994 TAG: 9412020803
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DEBRA GORDON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Medium: 66 lines
By fax, e-mail and hundreds of handwritten, heart-rending letters, the nation's elderly and their advocates have let Robert B. Blancato know what's on their minds.
Now it's up to Blancato and his staff to turn those issues into an agenda for this century's fourth, and last, White House Conference on Aging.
The results of that conference, in which 2,000 delegates will meet in Washington from May 2 to 5, will set the nation's policy on aging for the next decade.
Blancato, executive director of the conference, was the keynote speaker Thursday at the Newport News Omni for a joint conference between the Virginia Association on Aging and the Virginia Aging Coalition called ``Family Caregiving: Intergenerational Perspectives.''
The meeting was one of hundreds being held around the country to solicit information for the May conference.
Many of the issues the conference will address, said Blancato, weren't even on the public's mind 14 years ago.
``In 1981, when we talked about grandparents, we were talking about visitation rights. Now, 3 million grandparents are the primary caregiver for their grandchildren. Two million are providing day care.
``In 1981, we were just beginning to hold hearings about elder abuse. Now, it's the No. 1 issue we're hearing about.''
Several key issues are emerging in the more than 700 public comments his office has received, Blancato said.
These include care-giving issues, paying for and providing long-term care, the changing role of grandparents, retaining the elderly's independence, Alzheimer's disease, elder abuse and growing diversity.
They're all crucial issues that the nation must address, Blancato said, because of its growing elderly population.
Since the last aging conference in 1981, the numbers of people over age 75 have increased dramatically. And in 1996, the first baby boomers turn 50, beginning the aging process of the largest generation in the nation's history. By 2030, the 50-plus population in the United States will almost double, rising from its current 67 million to 126 million.
Previous conferences in 1961, 1971 and 1981 were considered successful because they helped focus the nation's attention on aging issues.
The 1961 conference, for instance, eventually led to the establishment of Medicare, the health care system for the elderly; the Older Americans Act of 1965; and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
MOTOYA NAKAMURA/Staff
Bob Blancato, of the White House Conference on Aging, gathered with
state groups to glean information to take to the national meeting.
Graphic
TO SPEAK UP
To contact the White House Conference on Aging, call
202-245-7116; fax: 202-245-0012; Internet:
Conference(AT)Ban-Gate.Aoa.Dhhs.Gov
by CNB