[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4859 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4859
To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to reduce social isolation
among older individuals.
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IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 24, 2019
Mr. Trone (for himself and Mr. Walberg) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to reduce social isolation
among older individuals.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Older Americans from
Social Isolation Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. INCREASED FOCUS OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY ON HEALTH EFFECTS OF
SOCIAL ISOLATION.
Section 202(a) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C.
3012(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (30) by striking ``; and'' and inserting a
semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (31) by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(32) develop objectives, priorities, and a long-term plan
for supporting State and local efforts involving education
about, prevention of, detection of, and response to negative
health effects associated with social isolation among older
individuals.''.
SEC. 3. ADVISORY COUNCIL ON HEALTH EFFECTS OF SOCIAL ISOLATION.
Section 202 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3012) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``(h)(1) The Assistant Secretary shall convene an advisory council
on negative health effects associated with social isolation with aging
network stakeholders, including caregivers, and select members in a
manner that ensures geographic diversity of the members--
``(A) to review and evaluate efforts to address negative
health effects associated with social isolation among older
individuals; and
``(B) to identify challenges, solutions, and best practices
related to such efforts.
``(2) The advisory council convened under paragraph (1) shall--
``(A) ensure consideration of consumer-directed care
models; and
``(B) submit a report to Congress on its findings.
``(3) The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not
apply with respect to the advisory council convened under paragraph
(1).''.
SEC. 4. SUPPORTIVE SERVICES AND SENIOR CENTERS.
Section 321(a) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C.
3030d(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (24) by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) by redesignating paragraph (25) as paragraph (26); and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (24) the following:
``(25) services that promote or support social
connectedness and reduce negative health effects associated
with social isolation; and''.
SEC. 5. DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.
(a) Demonstrations.--Section 411(a) of the Older Americans Act of
1965 (42 U.S.C. 3032(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (13) by striking ``and'' at the end;
(2) by redesignating paragraph (14) as paragraph (15); and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (13) the following:
``(14) projects that address negative health effects
associated with social isolation among older adults; and''.
(b) Repeal.--Section 416 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42
U.S.C. 3032e) is repealed.
SEC. 6. YOUNGER ONSET ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE.
(a) Definition of ``Family Caregiver''.--Section 302(3) of the
Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3022(3)) is amended by inserting
``of any age'' after ``an individual''.
(b) Definition of ``Resident''.--Section 711(6) of the Older
Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3058(6)) is amended by inserting ``of
any age'' after ``individual''.
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