Recognizing the need to coordinate and integrate services for older adults and people with disabilities, Tennessee has created a new Department of Aging and Disability to provide more strategic planning and coordination of services.

The new department, formed when Gov. Bill Lee (R) recently signed SB 2098 into law, merges the Commission on Aging and Disability and the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities into a single department. The new department will also house the Office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman.

The new department will be responsible for planning, developing and coordinating public and private efforts to meet the growing needs of older adults and people with disabilities. Advocates said the new department is an important step to improve the state’s response to Alzheimer’s disease and ensure that the disease and other dementias are prioritized across state agencies and addressed as a public health crisis. Combining the two departments also offers opportunities for administrative efficiency, more consistent policies and practices, inclusivity and better planning and communication, they said.

The new law also creates the Alzheimer’s and Dementia Respite Care Pilot Program to provide services in the home and community through grants to Area Agencies on Aging and Disability across the state. Additionally, it creates an Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia Advisory Council to design a state plan for Alzheimer’s Disease by January 15, 2027, with updates planned every three years.

The Tennessee Health Care Association/Tennessee Center for Assisted Living said the 65-and-older population is the fastest-growing demographic in the state and steps must be taken to ensure resources are there to care for those adults. greater.

“By merging the Tennessee Commission on Aging with the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, the state is creating a Cabinet-level agency that will be responsible for improved coordination and delivery of services,” said THCA Executive Director/ TNCAL, Jesse Samples. McKnight Senior Living. “We are encouraged by the reaction of the Department of Disability and Aging and hope that the variety of services at different levels of the continuum of care will be advocated for and supported to ensure the highest level of services for all Tennesseans.”

Samples added that THCA/TCAL supports better coordination, advocacy and resources for older adults and people with disabilities. The association is also a strong advocate for people’s opportunities “to live and age as independently as possible, while preserving options for where and how to receive services,” she said.

The changes will take effect on July 1.