August 15, 2003 :: No. 20

Public Hearing on Aging Is Hosted at Cal State Fullerton Aug. 19

California’s Health and Human Services Agency will conduct a public hearing Tuesday, Aug. 19, at Cal State Fullerton on the state’s “Strategic Plan for an Aging Population.”

The hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m.- 3 p.m. in the Mackey Auditorium of the Ruby Gerontology Center.

Lynda Terry, director of the California Department of Aging, will serve as moderator. Cheri Jasinski, project manager of the Health and Human Services Agency, is the hearing facilitator.

The day’s program is geared for gathering public feedback on the strategic plan prior to its presentation to the state Legislature. The plan is designed to help prepare the state for the growth of its aging population.

Topics scheduled for discussion at the hearing include: economic security, work, civic involvement, healthy aging and preventative health, health care, housing and transportation.

Pauline Abbott, director of the Institute of Gerontology at Cal State Fullerton and past president of the California Council of Gerontology and Geriatrics, assisted in developing the plan.

“My primary area of focus has been to ensure that education with, for and on behalf of older adults and research are included in the plan,” she said. The plan is posted on the Web at ageplan@chhs.ca.gov.

Sponsoring the hearing are the university’s Institute of Gerontology and the Office of Public Affairs and Government Relations.