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NCOA encourages older adults to apply for unclaimed, free benefits

The National Council on Aging is comprised of individuals who serve older adults every day at senior centers, community-based organizations, and social and human services agencies
NCOA
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WGCU
The National Council on Aging is comprised of individuals who serve older adults every day at senior centers, community-based organizations, and social and human services agencies

Since 1950, the National Council on Aging — NCOA — has aimed to connect older Americans with free benefits and assistance. Currently, its focus is on helping people enroll in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Medicare Savings Program, and financial heating and cooling assistance.

And it is estimated that older adults leave $30 billion on the table every year because they are not aware of the often free benefits or do not know how to enroll in them.

Jennifer Teague, the associate director for the NCOA’s center for benefits access, said that the Council doesn’t directly give clients benefits, but serves as a bridge between the individual and these programs.

“It's about making sure that older adults know about these benefits, and then are able to actually apply for those benefits through the appropriate sources,” Teague said.

Many benefits application processes are heavily digitized, which is difficult for some seniors to navigate. The NCOA is able to remove that barrier.

In partnership with the Administration for Community Living, the NCOA funds 90 benefits enrollment centers across the country. These centers help clients get additional assistance on top of the national programs. Florida’s only center is ElderSource in Jacksonville.

Donnie Graham, a 77-year-old client of ElderSource, was in danger of becoming homeless. The center was able to help him move into an affordable place urgently.
 
“Those folks right away helped me fill out an application, and without hardly any hesitation at all, they came up with the funds and made it possible for me to move in,” Graham said.

While ElderSource has helped plenty of people like Graham, it being the only NCOA-funded center for benefits access in Florida decreases local access to assistance. Veronica Matthews, a care transitions coach at ElderSource, agrees that it’s a barrier.

“I have seven counties that I can assist with, but then there's 60 other counties that may not get the same kind of assistance,” Matthews said. “There are so many seniors out there who can't access what they need.”

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