The RI Budget proposal includes support for our fastest growing demographic but does it go far enough?

Herb Weiss covered the proposed state budget in an article for rinewstoday.com In it, he highlights that Governor Dan McKee has initiated the legislative debate on Rhode Island’s $13.68 billion FY 2025 Budget in his State of the State address. The proposed budget focuses on investments in education, small businesses, and healthcare without increasing broad-based…

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ADUs: A Creative Way to Address Housing Affordability and Equity

The Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies recently published an article about the potential benefits of accessory dwelling units (ADUs). It discusses the challenges of building ADUs and the efforts that states and localities have made to encourage their construction. Accessory dwelling units (ADUs), also known as granny flats, in-law suites, or carriage houses, are…

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Senate bipartisan proposal boon to nation’s family caregivers – Herb Weiss

The Alleviating Barriers for Caregivers (ABC) Act, introduced as S. 3109, aims to simplify the federal bureaucracy and streamline access to key financial and healthcare programs for the more than 48 million family caregivers in the United States. The bipartisan bill, introduced by Senators Edward Markey and Shelley Moore Capito, along with other co-sponsors, directs…

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The Hidden Struggle: The Impact of Caregiving on Retirement Savings

In a recent article, Herb Weiss highlights a troubling finding from the 33rd annual Retirement Confidence Survey (RCS), which suggests that caregivers are more likely to have lower levels of assets and more likely to have problems with debt than non-caregivers. Because of this they are also less likely to have saved for retirement and…

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New Census data reports the Graying of America and Rhode Island

In a new article published in RINewsToday by Herb Weiss, the changing demographics of our nation takes focus, serving as a wake-up call to Congress and federal and state officials who oversee aging programs and services to meet the needs of our growing population of older adults in Rhode Island and beyond. The following is…

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Enhancing Aging Programs and Services: A Closer Look at Rhode Island’s Proposed Budget

Rhode Island’s proposed budget for 2024 has recently garnered attention for its notable funding allocations toward programs and services benefiting seniors and older adults with disabilities. Maureen Maigret, chair of the Aging in Community Subcommittee of Rhode Island’s Long-Term Care Coordinating Council and policy consultant for the Senior Agenda Coalition of RI, expresses her satisfaction…

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RI General Assembly considers a bill that would provide regulatory flexibility to construct Accessory Dwelling Units

  Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) have become increasingly important in enabling older adults to maintain their independence and continue living within their communities. ADUs are separate living spaces that are added to existing homes or properties, providing an affordable housing option for older adults who may not be able to afford the rising cost of…

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Social Security and Medicare still face financial woes

In an article published on April 10th, Herb Weiss, contributing writer on aging issues for RINewsToday, highlighted findings from the 2023 Social Security and Medicare Trustees Report and the importance of strengthening both programs.  The annual reports on the financial health of the Social Security and Medicare programs were recently released by the Trustees, and…

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Herb Weiss’s latest piece calls for more funding to deliver aging programs and services

The Senior Agenda Coalition of RI (SACRI) has criticized Governor Dan McKee’s proposed $13.7 billion budget for fiscal year 2024, calling it “unfriendly to seniors” and urging for more funding for aging programs and services. SACRI, representing 21 organizations, is advocating for an “age-friendly” budget and has brought 220 older adults and aging advocates to…

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Volunteering: Your Single New Years Resolution

The following post was authored by Herb Weiss and published in RINewsToday on January 9, 2023. It is featured here with permission. Access the full article at rinewstoday.com   As the ball dropped in New York’s Time Square, many Americans have already penned New Year’s resolutions for 2023.  Making these resolutions as January approaches has…

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