Older Americans Month: Connect, Create, Contribute

This year’s Older Americans Month theme, Connect, Create, Contribute, encourages older adults and their communities to:

Older adults are empowered and communities are stronger as we connect, create and contribute to make a world in which we all want to grow older!

Joined over 1,200 advocates, mostly from Northern California, for the first-ever Disability & Aging Capitol Action (DACA) Day, co-hosted by California Alliance for Retired Americans (CARA) and Disability Action Coalition (DAC)! CARA arranged for free roundtrip bus transportation between San Francisco and Sacramento, plus brown bag lunch.

After a comfy, nearly two-hour ride on our chartered bus, our San Francisco group arrived at sunny Sacramento’s Cesar Chavez Park. 

FOB (Fresh Off Bus) photo opportunity with Senior & Disability Action (SDA) and My Diversability banners.

At check-in, we signed up to join 40 legislative teams (each team meeting 1 Senator and 2 Assembly members) and picked up our commemorative DACA Day/Unity with Diversity buttons as our lunch tokens.  CARA Director Jodi Reid said that sign-ups for San Francisco Assembly members Phil Ting (also Budget Chair and legislative sponsor of DACA Day) and David Chiu were already full, so I signed on to join team facilitated by Jessica Lehman, SDA Executive Director.  Since the legislature was in session, we ended up meeting staff rather than legislators.

Visited Resource Fair vendors like California Department of Aging, which gave out bottled water.

CARA's Nan Brasmer and DAC's Goldie T. House welcomed the crowds to educational rally. Representing close to 1 million people through 275 affiliated organizations, CARA is California’s largest, grassroots senior advocacy organization working to improve the quality of life of older adults and their families.  DAC represents people with disabilities and allies in California to protect and advance our civil rights, self-determination, and life opportunities by educating, communicating, and advocating—culminating in this 15^th anniversary of Disability Capitol Action Day!

Hip hop performance by Very Special Arts The Mini Monsterz from Luther Burbank High School!

Kendra DeAnna sang “I can’t hear you on the right side, can you switch to the left, I can’t help it, together we can make a change…”

81-year-old Pauline Brooks of CARA talked about working in fashion industry for 65 years until she retired with help from moving in with her daughter and son-in-law in Oakland, reminding us that not everyone has a family safety net so it is important to support DACA Day platform:  SB 512 Long-Term Services and Supports Options, and AB 1434 Increase SSI/SSP Base Grant and Reinstate COLA. 

Special education teacher sang about universal healthcare.

After our march from Cesar Chavez Park to steps of Capitol building, SDA team (Pi, Ligia, Jessica, Betty, Theresa, Tony, Sam Alicia, C.W.) are all smiles.

During lunch, our team of six met to discuss our upcoming legislative visit.  Jessica served as facilitator (introduced CARA, DAC, team members) and nailer (make sure questions answered); I served as note taker and packet presenter; and storytellers covered bills.  At minimum, we covered these two priority bills:

·       Californians have a unique opportunity to pass legislation that would begin to chart a path to provide long-term supports and services (LTSS) to all Californians, beginning with a feasibility study and assessment.  We must pass SB 512 and pave the way for providing LTSS for all! (We ask $1 million to conduct an actuarial study to determine the cost of providing additional options for LTSS: how many people will need these services, what they will cost, and how California may pay for them.)

·       It is time for California to increase the State portion of SSI/SSP so that we can move seniors and people with disabilities out of poverty.  Last year, we increased the state COLA slightly and made CalFresh available to SSI recipients.  Now we are urging passage of AB 1434 in order to restore recession-era cuts to SSI/SSP, bring payments to at least 100% of 2019 poverty level, and reinstate the annual COLA.  (To make this happen, we ask $1 billion.  Note:  More than $11 billion has been taken from 1.3 million SSI/SSP recipients who have had to live at sub-poverty level for the past decade after Governor Schwarzenegger made cuts to balance the state budget in 2008.) 

Team members also chose to present on following DAC policy platform bills: 

·       AB 715 Increase Medi-Cal Aged and Disabled Program Income Level to 138% of Federal Poverty Level ($1,396/month for individuals, and $1,892/month for couples).

·       SB 338 Senior and Disability Justice Act to strengthen law enforcement response to abuse of elders and adults with disabilities, with training and detailed policies and procedures based on model San Diego County Elder and Dependent Adult Abuse Blueprint.

·       SB 10 Establish state certification process for peer providers of mental health services and require Department of Health Care Services to submit Medicaid State Plan Amendment to add peer support specialist services as reimbursable Medi-Cal benefit.

After more than 30 minutes of waiting in line to enter State Capitol building, passing security check, and then waiting for an available elevator… we met with Israel Landa, Legislative Director for Assembly member Monique Limon (Democrat, 37^th Assembly District representing Santa Barbara and Ventura counties).  Though we could not get commitments from this office, we picked up cool blue tote bags with yellow letters reading, “Everything is Better #con LIMON!” 

Squeezed into reception area to meet with Gianna Rogers, aide to Assembly member Jordan Cunningham (Republican, 35^th Assembly District representing San Luis Obispo and portions of Santa Barbara counties).  He said he would deliver our messages to Cunningham, who authored legislation to increase access to health care and strengthen public safety.

Assembly member Cunningham’s father showed up during our visit!

Nora Lynn, Legislative Director for Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson (Democrat, 19^th Senate District, representing Santa Barbara and western Ventura counties), made our day when she (they) said Senator was committed to supporting our priority bills! She (they) wore DACA Day button and posed with our team of happy campers.  (As Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Jackson introduced gender-neutral language.) 

During the March to State Capitol building, chants included “Seniors and Disabled, need a seat at the table” and “Our homes, not nursing homes!” 

“Live in your home, not a nursing home” is the motto of Center for Elders’ Independence (CEI), which celebrated grand opening of its Downtown Oakland Day Center, sharing this historic 1922 building with administrative offices upstairs.  Modeled after San Francisco's On Lok, CEI is a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) organization that supports East Bay seniors age 55+ with multiple health challenges to live safely at home.

CEI CEO Linda Trowbridge thanked regulators who allowed CEI to separate the day center from PACE clinic about 5 miles away.  The former dark, dance club was renovated to this bright space that features a lounge area that opens into an activity center, 1,200 square foot fitness gym staffed with physical and occupational therapists for individual therapy and group exercise, computer lab, “tranquility room” for participants who want peace and quiet, outdoor courtyard with shaded seating and landscaping, etc.

Hors d’oeuvres at open demonstration kitchen, designed for participants to make their own snacks with dietitians during activity time.

Participant performs Korean dance to live piano.

Ribbon-cutting.

San Francisco Supervisors introduced a November ballot measure, Mental Health SF, which would build a new Mental Health Service Center to facilitate universal mental health care for anyone to access psychiatrists and other providers of mental health/substance use treatment, and establish a new Office of Coordinated Care to bring the City’s mental health systems under one network.  This initiative would be funded by a surcharge on local companies whose CEOs make more than 100 times the median income of their workers. 

Given the history of stigmatizing and institutionalizing people with mental illness, many older adults do not actively seek out stand-alone mental health care services and thus are underserved. For many older adults, primary care remains the entry point so I would prefer to see integrated behavioral health clinics to meet people where they are.  Further, as noted in Dr. Marc Agronin’s Therapy with Older Clients: Key Strategies for Success (2010), common medical conditions can impact mental illness; for example, joint pain and immobility of arthritis can lead to social isolation, insomnia, increased anxiety over falling; steroids used to treat rheumatoid arthritis can lead to confusion, anxiety, and depression.  Therefore, treat the whole person=mind+body!

Psychological First-Aid for Neighborhood Emergency Response Team with Elizabeth McMahon, PhD, who provided these tips to mentally prepare for an emergency to reduce stress and trauma reactions:

·       Adapt interactions based on diversity in community: Observe (cues), Ask (what is appropriate), Respect (differences)

·       In stressful situations: Stop (take “4 for Calm” belly breaths), Slow (for moment), Think (about situation—our role, what’s needed, possible reasons for someone’s actions/emotions, what’s best action available), Act (in most calm, caring and competent way you can).

·       If stress reactions begin to impact judgment/interactions: say “Time to Take Five” (cue to step away and practice self-care: eat, hydrate, do “4 for Calm”)

·       During emergency, connect with others: Set Tone Nonverbally (calm, caring, competent) and Verbally (soothing tone, lower pitch, adjust volume as needed, slower pace, short and simple phrasing); See the Need, Say the Need (“You can’t find your pet. You’re worried. You want your pet found”); Get a “Yes” (agreement to cooperate; e.g., “I’m here to help.  Are you willing to let me?”)

·       Assess needs (medical, practical, social, psychological) and know what resources are available

·       Direct: state simply what to do and why (“I need you to stay here because someone is coming to help you”)

·       Self-care after disaster: allow time to deal with reactions, use stress management tools, maintain social connections-talk with others who understand, create positive environment, limit media viewing, write about what learned from experience; always get support for suicidal thoughts, substance overuse, or violent activities

Historical trauma: As part of Asian Pacific Heritage Month and this year’s 70^th anniversary of China’s Communist Revolution, Helen Zia discussed her new book, Last Boat Out of Shanghai: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Fled Mao’s Revolution, with journalist Sherry Hu at SF Main Library.  Helen’s latest book was 12 years in the making, involving interviews with over 100 people, after her mother in her 70s finally shared her story of abandonment by her parents and exodus from Shanghai. Helen explained that her book is the only one in the English language about the exodus from Shanghai because people who survive trauma are not willing to share their experience right away, and many of her interviewees were talking to Helen, a stranger, for the first time sharing their whole stories.  Helen advised to keep asking because at some point people might be ready to tell their story, like her own mother who finally “felt strong enough” and then sensed a release of shame in the process.  Helen believes the World War II generation have post-traumatic stress syndrome.  
During her book tour, Helen said the Chinese government would not allow distribution of her book, but e-book available online; in Shanghai, Helen’s talk title was changed to “Four Young Shanghai People Leave and Go to America.” 

At Civic Center Plaza, Lest We Forget Holocaust Remembrance Project, by German-Italian photographer and filmmaker Luigi Toscano, included huge portrait of Gloria Lyon, who survived seven concentration camps, was rescued by the Swedish Red Cross and immigrated to the United States in 1947.  SF resident Gloria has shared her World War II experience in documentary, book, and Yom HaShoah service.  

Being seen and heard

Safety

Seniors from The Coronet participated in Arguello Boulevard Safety Community Walkthrough with San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency staff (wearing bright yellow vests) and diverse interest groups (Walk SF, SF Bicycle Coalition, car drivers, people using canes/walkers/wheelchairs) for a lively dialogue on improving safety for all ages and abilities!  According to Walk SF, between 2005 and 2011, at least 17 people have been struck while walking along Arguello; this statistic included an 87-year-old woman who lost her life crossing Arguello and Geary, near The Coronet in 2011 when Institute on Aging opened next door.

The Coronet seniors meet-up with District Supervisor Eric Mar when Walkthrough ended at Rossi Playground near dusk time.  Some of their suggestions to improve safety: audible signaling with countdown timers at crosswalks, at least 5 more seconds for pedestrian crossing, and resting benches along Rossi Playground. 

The Coronet hosted Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention for all abilities, with modifications like chair for arthritis and audio description for blind. 

Norman of The Coronet shared health and safety concerns during his visit to a sister senior housing site in East Oakland at Alameda Area Agency on Aging’s Needs Assessment Public Forum.  He expressed appreciation for The Coronet staff who are accessible and responsive to promote the overall well-being of senior residents. Always thoughtful, Norman presented Oakland residents with glittered red heart cutouts that he made in San Francisco!

Poverty

This month’s Senior & Disability Action (SDA) meeting focused on the California State Budget and Increasing SSI (Supplemental Security Income)/SSP (State Supplemental Payment).

Shanti Prasad (center, in photo above) of Alameda County Community Food Bank is part of Californians for SSI (CA4SSI), a statewide coalition of over 200 organizations across the aging, disability rights, housing and homeless, anti-hunger and anti-poverty sectors.  CA4SSI seeks to prioritize SSI/SSP funding in the 2016-17 budget to lift more than 1 million Californians out of poverty.  
During the 2009 recession, the annual cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) for SSI/SSP was repealed.  In addition, the state-funded SSP was cut from $233 per month in 2009 to the federal minimum of $156 per month.  The federal SSI grant is $733 per month, for a combined $889 SSI/SSP grant per month, or just 90% of the federal poverty level.  CA4SSI seeks to repeal the cuts to SSP and to restore the COLA.

SDA member Nelly Echeverria (left, in photo above) shared her experience of trying to survive on SSI/SSP when her rent, which was $600 in 2008, has increased by $120, so there is little leftover to cover costs for healthcare and healthy food (SSI recipients in California are not eligible for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). (2015 MacArthur "Genius" Fellow Matthew Desmond explains how the housing market exploits the poor and keeps them in poverty in his new book, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City.)

Nelly’s experience is similar to the four women featured in a Justice in Aging video about being poor in old age: 

·         Older women are twice as likely to live in poverty as men due to wage discrimination, low wage jobs, death of a spouse and divorce.

·         26% of Native American, 25% of black and 23% of Hispanic women over age 65 live in poverty.

·         It doesn’t add up: To meet basic needs, it costs an average $23,317 per year for a senior living alone in California; yet, $12,155 is the average yearly social security income for a retired woman. 

·         Healthcare coverage stops when there’s no money for copayments: an older woman spends average $5,036 per year in out-of-pocket health care costs—more than an older man and any other age group. Women age 85+ spend average $8,574.

·         Nearly 1 out of 5 seniors nearing retirement have no retirement savings at all.

Justice in Aging has been working with Congress on SSI Restoration Act. 

According to UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, elderly Californians whose income is above the official poverty level but below what is required to maintain a basic quality of life make up the “hidden poor.” This group is almost twice as likely to say they are in poor or fair health; feel depressed; and cannot get timely health care as their wealthier counterparts.  Yet unlike seniors living below the poverty line, they often don't qualify for safety-net programs and services that would help ease financial burdens such as health care expenses.

San Francisco housing advocate Tommi Avicolli Mecca provided the following perspective in Who Wants to be an Old Queen? 

“I chose to work for nonprofits and businesses that reflected my political views, so I never earned tremendous amounts of money…Thankfully, I can look back at my work life and say that I contributed something worthwhile to society. But a good conscience doesn’t mean a hill of beans when it comes time to pay the rent or go grocery shopping with a Social Security check that doesn’t stretch far enough. Add on some sickness that needs constant medication and I could be seriously screwed. As so many other seniors are…getting old is the scariest thing I’ve faced in my life.”

Advice 

Book release party for the late Susan O’Malley’s Advice From My 80-Year-Old Self: Real Words of Wisdom from People Ages 7 to 88, at San Francisco Arts Commission Main Gallery.

 

How to give a pep talk: pay attention, ask questions, open your heart, listen actively. 

O’Malley’s poster art at Muni bus shelter on Market Street in San Francisco. O'Malley had asked passersby in Berkeley, "If you had an opportunity to meet your 80-year-old self, what do you think he/she would tell you?"  My response: "Say what you need to say before it's too late, and don't just suck it up."

Maintaining chi flow with magnolias in full bloom at The Coronet.