In Scranton, Shapiro orders 10-year master plan for state's older adults

May 26—SCRANTON — The state Department of Aging will begin work on a 10-year master plan to improve services for older adults, a key priority in the state with a large and rapidly growing senior population.

Gov. Josh Shapiro and aging department officials announced the ambitious plan, which will also address the needs of people living with disabilities, at a pair of public events in Scranton on Thursday.

"From lower costs for health care, from independent living to skilled nursing homes, from healthy food to strong community centers, we will listen to Pennsylvania's many seniors and build a plan to address the many challenges that they face," Shapiro said shortly before signing an executive order directing the department to develop the plan.

He signed the order during an event at United Neighborhood Centers' Scranton Healthy Aging Campus.

Area Agency on Aging offices and the Centers for Independent Living will host listening sessions in every county in the state, state Secretary of Aging Jason Kavulich, Lackawanna County's former Area Agency on Aging director, said at a kickoff announcement held later in the day at the DeNaples Center at the University of Scranton.

The input will be used to develop a comprehensive plan to identify the most pressing issues and better coordinate services, Akbar Hossain, secretary of policy and planning, told about 150 people, including area residents and dozens of social service agency officials, who attended the announcement.

"So many of our seniors require different kinds of supports and a range of services and yet in many cases these support systems don't work together," Hossain said. "We've heard firsthand accounts from seniors who told us we need to do more."

Pennsylvania is home to

3.4 million senior citizens, which equates to 17.8% of the total population. Seniors are expected to account for 25% of the population by 2030.

During a public comment portion of the session, Old Forge resident Edith Miller, 65, urged officials to address housing insecurity. Miller said she has been living on her son's couch the past year because she could not afford her rent after a new landlord bought the home in which she lived.

"I can't find anything I can afford," she said. "They want more than I get a month in disability."

The state expects the plan to be complete by February. Kavulich said counties will have a say in how best to gather public feedback.

Residents can submit input online at aging.pa.gov/masterplan, by emailing agingplan@pa.gov or by sending a letter to Pennsylvania Department of Aging c/o Master Plan, 555 Walnut St., 5th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17101.

Contact the writers:

jhorvath@timesshamrock.com 570-348-9141, @jhorvathTT

tbesecker@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9137

@tmbeseckerTT

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