02-21-2024 PTL - Flipbook - Page 17
A Special Advertising Section of Baltimore Sun Media Group | Wednesday, February 21, 2024
is happening right now, and then have
strategies for what will occur 10 years
from now.
“We recognize that LRM will be our
roadmap. It may be under the aegis of
MDoA, but it will involve other agencies, the public and private sectors, and
anyone else we can involve to prepare
for the challenges and opportunities we
are facing.
“We also need to accept that this is
far from a homogenous group. Saying
this demographic is over 60 is about
the only thing they share in common.
Disparities in life expectancy from one
part of Maryland to another already exist
and different jurisdictions throughout the
state are already overwhelmed.
“We need multisector planning for
aging (MPA), recognizing that soon
25-35 percent of our population will
be over 65. It’s already true in parts
of Maryland,” Roques explains. “We’re
examining and analyzing different funding sources, services and organizational
models because, at this point, we’re not
set up for a rapidly aging population that
will live to be 100.”
MPA is a 10+ year blueprint for
restructuring state and local policies and
convening a wide range of cross-sector
stakeholders to collaboratively address
the needs of older-adult populations.
Visit Multisector Plan for Aging (https://
multisectorplanforaging.org/) to learn
more.
“One thing we’re very specifically
trying to do is to expand the narrative
about older people in the state. The
current view of older people is that they
are frail, a drag, a burden, and at the
magical age of 65 a person shuts down.
And, if not already demented, they will
be any second now. There’s much more
to that story,” Roques says. “Yes, there
are people who are old at that age, but
as many or more are still charging forward, still working, still actively involved.
Our models don’t account for longer
lives, so everything has to be updated
to reflect today’s realities. One of those
realities is the forgotten middle, that vast
and growing population who can’t afford
longer life. Our statutory mandate is to
advocate for older people. This segment
must be included.
“It comes down to this. The issues
we need to address include housing,
financial planning and employment,”
Roques clarifies. “We have to start early
on, thinking about enabling more people
to be financially secure, healthy, socially connected and purposeful. These
are the key domains around which our
plan will be designed. Few people have
planned for this part of their lives to last
30 or 40 years or more. They don’t have
the wherewithal to fund that. Existing
models are based on shorter life spans.”
From there, Roques is looking at
an 18-to-24-month process to include
specific details and then to prioritize
the order as it is implemented. To stay
updated, visit the Longevity Ready
Maryland Initiative website: https://
aging.maryland.gov/Pages/LRM.aspx.
The MDoA is doing great things to
improve our lives.
But Wait … There’s More!
In addition to helping the MDoA
address the new realities of living longer, Roques is still overseeing existing
programs. Working in tandem with the
statewide network of 19 Area Agencies
on Aging, there are lots of programs to
assist older Marylanders with services and information. Visit https://aging.
maryland.gov and click on Programs
and Services. This is just a sampling of
what the MDOA can help with. There are
lots more.
Elder Abuse Prevention: Educates
older adults and their caregivers about
the various forms of abuse, how to prevent abuse, and what to do if someone
becomes a victim of a crime.
Elder Financial Exploitation: Provides
Longevity Ready Maryland,
continued on page 20
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