DCOA E*News At-A-Glance
 Last week, Mayor Vincent C. Gray made visits to the Washington Seniors Wellness Center located at 3001 Alabama Avenue, SE and the Congress Heights Senior Wellness Center located at 3500 Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE. During the visits he toured the facilities, spoke with seniors and answered many questions of the participants. The Mayor passed out new literature that described why the District of Columbia is a great place to live, work, play and do business. This generated many questions about the District's population, the economy, retail and affordable housing. The Mayor encouraged all to provide guidance to our youth and share why D.C. is a great place to live.
Mayor Vincent C. Gray established the D.C. Health Benefit
Exchange Authority to implement President Obama‘s new health care law known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). ACA benefits thousands of Americans
including District residents, small business owners, and their employees and will soon provide access to comprehensive, affordable health coverage.
Many individuals and families will qualify for help paying for health
insurance premiums.
D.C. Health
Link was created to allow District residents and small businesses to get the facts
about their rights and benefits, shop for coverage, and compare options
side-by-side before choosing the plan that best meets their needs and
budgets. Residents will begin to enroll in the health plan of their
choice on October 1, 2013, with coverage starting January 1, 2014. The next DC Health Link Town Hall meeting will be held Tuesday, July 16, 2013 (Ward 7), 6:30 – 8:30 pm at Deanwood Recreation Center. For more information visit the website http://hbx.dc.gov.
According
to the latest U.S. Census Bureau Estimates for the District of Columbia in
2012, the D.C. population has grown by 30,600 residents since 2010. The
city population
now stands at 632,323 of which 103, 483 were senior citizens (persons age 60 and older). As the first wave of baby boomers are turning 60, the senior population continues to grow. The senior population grew by
4,971 persons which represents a 5 percent increase during that same
period. The senior population continues to see the greatest growth from
both ends of the age continuum; the youngest seniors (60-69 years of
age) and the oldest seniors (85 years of age and older). Within the
senior population, the youngest seniors saw the biggest growth (over 10 percent) and those
persons 85 years and older grew by almost 7 percent.
Annually
the senior population is growing at a rate of 1.5 percent. It is projected
that by 2015, almost 17 percent of the population could be at least 60
years of
age and older, or one out of every seven residents in the
District.
Washington, D.C. Population 6O Years and Older
2012 Census Estimate Persons %*
Total Population 60 years and older 103,483 100.00
Female 60,275 58.2
Male 43,208 41.8
By Age
60-64 31,594 30.5
65-74 39,698 38.4
75-84 21,188 20.5
85+ 11,003 10.6
*May not equal 100% due to rounding.
Ward 6 senior Carolyn Lawson is very pleased with the assistance she received from Options Counseling Services provided by the D.C. Office on Aging. She admits that as a long time resident of the District she has never needed help. She contacted social worker Felicia Cowser and had an appointment for the next day. Her questions were answered and she was counseled on options she never thought of asking about. The assistance she received was so helpful that she wrote a letter to the Mayor singing the praises of Ms. Cowser over and over.
The Office on Aging is available to help persons age 60 and older, persons with disabilities age 18 and older and their caregivers. For more information on how the office can assist, call our Information and Assistance Unit at 202-724-5626.
The
Developmental Disabilities Council (DDC) is a federally funded community program charged with identifying
the most pressing needs of people with developmental disabilities in the
District
of Columbia. The DDC addresses these needs through systems change and
capacity building efforts that promote self-determination, integration
and inclusion for people with developmental disabilities.
The upcoming meeting of the DDC will be held Thursday, July 18, 2013, at 441 4th Street, NW, Conference Room #1117, 3 – 5 pm. The DDC Meeting is open to the general public. By Metro Rail take the Judiciary Square Station on the
Red Line. To
learn more about the DDCl or request reasonable accommodations to
participate in the meetings, contact Mat McCollough (202.727.6744;
Mathew.mccollough@dc.gov).
The D.C.
Commission on Persons with Disabilities will hold its next meeting on Wednesday,
July 31, 2013 at 9 am. The
commission serves as an advisory body to the Mayor and all meetings are open to
the public. New Commissioners will have an opportunity to introduce themselves.
To learn more about the D.C. Commission on
Persons with Disabilities (DCCPD) or request reasonable accommodations to
participate in the meetings, contact Christina Mitchell by July 24th at christina.mitchell@dc.gov or call 202-481-3877.
The D.C. Board of Nursing Home Administration
consists of 5 members appointed by the Mayor with the advice
and consent of the Council. The board has 4 open
positions which include:
-
Nursing Home Administrator (licensed in DC);
-
Educator from an institution of higher learning engaged in; teaching health care administration;
-
Physician or Osteopath licensed in the District who has a demonstrated interest in long-term care; and
-
Consumer member (cannot be a health professional).
If you are interested in applying, visit the Office of Boards and Commissions (OBC) website
http://obc.dc.gov/page/obc-application-form-and-guide-eligibility.or contact Darryl Gorman, OBC Director, at
darryl.gorman@dc.gov
or Davida Crockett at davida.crockett@dc.gov.
Quarterly meetings are held on the 2nd Wednesday of March, June, September and December from 10 am – 12 pm.
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