2019 Press Releases

Bone & Muscle Health Can “Make or Break” Care as We Age; Geriatrics Experts Hope These New Insights Can Strengthen Science’s Response

  • #Geriatrics experts at prestigious @AmerGeriatrics @NIHgov conference hope a call for hard evidence can address “soft tissue” disorders that make falls, fractures, & muscle loss unnecessarily common w/ age http://ow.ly/e6FV30pYKig

New York (Dec. 3, 2019)—Experts at a prestigious medical conference hosted by the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) and funded by the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH’s) National Institute on Aging (NIA) hope their work—reported this week in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (JAGS)—can help yield hard evidence to address the range of “soft tissue” and bone disorders that contribute to falls, fractures, and muscle loss as we age.

“Falls, fractures, and muscle loss all have a major impact on our health as older adults, not only because they stop us from keeping active but also because that inactivity can have a ripple effect on all aspects of health and quality of life,” said Cathleen Colón-Emeric, MD, MHSc, FACP, AGSF, who co-chaired the AGS-NIA conference this past March. “By looking at some of the key and interrelated health conditions that can contribute to falls, fractures, and muscle loss, we hope we can contribute to closing knowledge gaps as we develop better care.”

UPDATE: House Passes EMPOWER for Health Act, Which Moves to Senate on Road to Supporting Us All as We Age

New York (Oct. 28, 2019)—The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) congratulates the U.S. House of Representatives, which within hours of bringing the legislation to the floor approved by voice vote the Educating Medical Professionals and Optimizing Workforce Efficiency and Readiness (EMPOWER) for Health Act of 2019 (H.R. 2781) championed by Representatives Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Michael Burgess (R-TX). The bill, which received early, widespread bipartisan support as a critical measure to support health for all Americans as we age, now moves to the U.S. Senate, where AGS experts have advocated ardently for swift passage to ensure appropriate supports for older Americans.

 “The future we’re working for at the AGS—a future when all older Americans have access to high-quality, person-centered care—begins by building the workforce to make that possible, and by ensuring that workforce can connect us to the tools and supports we need as we grow older together,” observed Nancy E. Lundebjerg, MPA. CEO of the AGS. “The EMPOWER for Health Act will make that possible by supporting two training programs that are as critical to our future as they are widely supported, thanks in large part to the bipartisan efforts that will make this bill law.”

With Its Passage Now All But Assured, EMPOWER for Health Act Highlights a Rare But Important Bipartisan Priority: Supporting Us All as We Age

New York (Oct. 28, 2019)—Among several legislative proposals slated for a vote today in the U.S. House of Representatives, one in particular offers a glimpse at something unique: Bipartisan collaboration and support. But as experts from the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) observe, that may be because the Educating Medical Professionals and Optimizing Workforce Efficiency and Readiness (EMPOWER) for Health Act of 2019 (H.R. 2781) stands poised to accomplish something as unique as it is necessary: Putting federal power behind training the health workforce we need as we age.

“The future we’re working for at the AGS—a future when all older Americans have access to high-quality, person-centered care—begins by building the workforce to make that possible, and by ensuring that workforce can connect us to the tools and supports we need as we grow older together,” observed Nancy E. Lundebjerg, MPA. CEO of the AGS. “The EMPOWER for Health Act will make that possible by supporting two training programs that are as critical to our future as they are widely supported, thanks in large part to the bipartisan efforts that will make this bill law.”

With AGS CoCare: HELP™, AGS Seeks to Expand the Reach of a Seminal Program that Put Delirium Prevention on the Map

  • With @AmerGeriatrics CoCare: HELP, #Geriatrics Experts Are Expanding Seminal Program that Put #Delirium Prevention on the Map http://ow.ly/N2Ss30pHkm6

AGS CoCare: HELPNew York (Oct. 10, 2019)—A seminal program for preventing delirium (the medical term for abrupt, rapid-onset confusion or altered mental state, affecting millions of older adults annually) and loss of function for hospitalized older adults stands poised for a major expansion thanks to the American Geriatrics Society (AGS). As the soon-to-be newest addition to the AGS “CoCare” portfolio, a suite of programs helping embed geriatrics expertise in broader care for older adults, AGS CoCare: HELP™ represents a new step forward for a program that has already taken significant strides.

Geriatrics Experts on Achieving Gender Equity in Health Care: “When Women Rise, We All Rise”

  • #Geriatrics experts on achieving #gender #equity in health care: “When #women rise, we all rise.” Learn more in new @AGSJournal position statement from @AmerGeriatrics https://bit.ly/WhenWomenRise

New York (Oct. 1, 2019)—Putting power and potential behind gender equity in health care isn’t just common sense. It’s critical to the future of health, safety, and independence for us all as we age, so says the American Geriatrics Society (AGS) in a new position statement released today, International Day of Older Persons. The statement outlines strategic objectives that can help us achieve a simple truth: “When women rise, we all rise.”

“Gender discrimination isn’t just ‘wrong.’ It has real and alarmingly negative public health consequences,” said Sunny Linnebur, PharmD, FCCP, FASCP, BCPS, BCGP, president of the AGS. “At a time when more of us than ever before are poised to contribute to our communities thanks to longer lifespans, we need the whole of society—irrespective of gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation—to stand against discrimination as we stand up for women. Because when women rise, we all rise.”

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