March 26, 2010

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The challenges and choices swirling around long-term care for older adults will be the focus of a conference hosted by the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) on May 6.

The third annual UAB Aging Policy Conference will bring together a panel of leading national figures to discuss the reasons long-term care has become an urgent policy issue, how it should be financed and the role of government in that financing, among other issues.

The "Long-Term Care: Challenges and Choices" conference, sponsored by the UAB Center for Aging, Lister Hill Center for Health Policy, AARP, and the Birmingham VA Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, will run from 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Thursday, May 6 in the Hill University Center Great Hall, 1400 University Blvd., Birmingham. The conference is free and open to the public, but space is limited and reservations must be made by May 1.

"Conference speakers will address aging issues of great importance in Alabama, including the state's role in providing and financing long-term care and the relationship between private industry and government," said Julie Locher, Ph.D., MSPH, director of UAB's Public Policy and Aging Program. "This conference is especially relevant; government, health-care professionals and the private sector must take steps to adequately care for our growing senior population."

Speakers will include Pedro Luis Gozalo, Ph.D., a health economist at Brown University and a national expert in issues related to access to long-term care, and Nora Super, director of Federal Government Relations, Health and Long-Term Care at AARP.

Other presenters are Meredith Kilgore, Ph.D., associate professor of Health Care Organization and Policy at UAB; state Sen. Linda Coleman, D-Jefferson County, who chairs the Alabama Long-Term Care Rebalancing Committee; and Mark Trail, former Medicaid Officer of Georgia.

The conference is co-sponsored by the Geriatric Education Center, Deep South Resource Center for Minority Aging Research and Southeastern Center for Excellence in Geriatric Medicine.

About AARP

AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people ages 50-plus have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. For more information, go to www.aarp.com.

About UAB's Lister Hill Center for Health Policy

The Lister Hill Center has a universitywide mission to facilitate the conduct of health policy research, disseminate the findings of that research beyond the usual channels of academic publication and sponsor the Lister Hill Health Policy Fellows program. For more information, go to www.soph.uab.edu/listerhill.

About the UAB Center for Aging

The UAB Center for Aging is a world leader in optimizing function, enhancing management of illness and reducing health disparities among older adults. The center comprises an interdisciplinary community of more than 200 faculty members and staff working together to promote the health and well-being of older persons and their families. For more information, go to www.aging.uab.edu/.