[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 86 (Wednesday, May 5, 1999)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 24277-24278]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-11476]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 86 / Wednesday, May 5, 1999 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 24277]]


                Proclamation 7190 of April 30, 1999

                
Older Americans Month, 1999

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                As we look forward to the 21st century, we honor the 
                millions of older Americans whose contributions have 
                strengthened and sustained our Nation throughout the 
                20th century. These special citizens have led us 
                through times of conflict, depression, peace, and 
                prosperity and have witnessed firsthand the milestones 
                that have defined this era as the ``American Century.'' 
                This month, as we salute their achievements, let us 
                also renew our commitment to preserve for older 
                Americans a quality of life that will help them look 
                ahead to the future with peace of mind.

                In recent decades, extraordinary advances in science, 
                technology, and medicine, as well as our increased 
                awareness of the importance of good nutrition and 
                physical fitness, have enabled Americans to live 
                longer, healthier lives. Over the course of the past 
                100 years, the average American's life-span has 
                lengthened by nearly three decades, with the percentage 
                of older Americans in our population more than 
                tripling. By the year 2030, one in five Americans will 
                be aged 65 or older.

                As we enter the new millennium with a strong economy 
                and the first budget surpluses since the 1960s, we have 
                a historic opportunity to embrace the challenges and 
                possibilities of a society where men and women will 
                lead longer, more active, more productive lives. My 
                Administration is working to make the most of this 
                opportunity by proposing to set aside more than 75 
                percent of any budget surplus over the next 15 years to 
                protect Social Security and Medicare; and we will also 
                work to increase our investment in the scientific and 
                medical research and development programs that will 
                continue to lengthen and improve the lives of Americans 
                in the years to come. We must continue to support older 
                Americans--as well as their caregivers and those who 
                provide critical home and community-based services--
                through a strong, reauthorized Older Americans Act; and 
                we must work to ensure that long-term care needs are 
                met now and in the future.

                The theme of this year's celebration, ``Honor the Past, 
                Imagine the Future: Towards a Society for all Ages,'' 
                reminds us of the profound debt of gratitude we owe to 
                the generations of older Americans whose hard work, 
                courage, faith, sacrifice, and patriotism helped to 
                make this Nation great. Through turmoil and triumph, 
                these Americans not only have defended our fundamental 
                values of liberty, justice, and equality, but they also 
                have handed down to younger generations the enduring 
                traditions of community, family, and love of country 
                that bind our society together.

                Long life is a gift we must cherish and a wonderful 
                opportunity and responsibility for which we must 
                prepare. I urge all Americans to take time during this 
                month to reaffirm our commitment, as individuals and as 
                a Nation, to meet the challenges of an aging society. 
                Working together, we can improve the lives of our older 
                citizens, their families, and their caregivers and 
                strive to ensure that all Americans enjoy healthy, 
                financially secure, and productive lives.

[[Page 24278]]

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United 
                States, do hereby proclaim May 1999 as Older Americans 
                Month. I urge Government officials, business people, 
                community leaders, educators, volunteers, and all the 
                other people of the United States to celebrate the 
                contributions older Americans have made throughout 
                their lives to the progress of our Nation.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                thirtieth day of April, in the year of our Lord 
                nineteen hundred and ninety-nine, and of the 
                Independence of the United States of America the two 
                hundred and twenty-third.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 99-11476
Filed 5-4-99; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P