AARP Hearing Center
Funding for Home Health Program, Nutrition Assistance Top Legislative Focus
Posted on 01/01/26
by Cristina Rouvalis
When a wheel on Alma Rosa Perez’s walker fell off, the 71-year-old didn’t know how she was going to get it repaired. She was also suffering from severe back pain and lung issues but was unable to drive herself to the doctor and didn’t know how to set up telemedicine appointments.
Those worries disappeared in March after a case manager from a state program called Health Homes started visiting monthly at her Kennewick home in southern Washington.
The success with clients like Perez is spurring AARP Washington to join an effort to keep funding Health Homes. It’s one of AARP’s top priorities for the 2026 legislative session, along with funding for nutrition programs.
The first thing Perez’s caseworker did was get the walker repaired. She also brought a laptop to make those video appointments and even spurred the insurance company to pay for a lab bill that had been rejected.
Perez, a retired solderer who blames her frail lungs on that job, says the monthly in-person visits are a lifeline to navigate the increasingly high-tech health care system.
“It’s very important to me because I don’t know how to do technology. I don’t have access to a computer, either,” she says.
AARP Washington is working with the Washington Association of Area Agencies on Aging to urge support for the Health Homes program, which helps clients eligible for both Medicaid and Medicare who have the highest medical needs.
With state and federal dollars, Health Homes provides face-to-face support to more than 11,000 people in Washington who have multiple chronic conditions.
The state budgeted $15 million for Health Homes starting last July, but the money runs out Dec. 31, 2026.
AARP Washington is pushing for another $6 million to extend the program until June 30, 2027, which would trigger an $8.35 million match from the federal government, says Cathy MacCaul, who is advocacy director for AARP Washington.
Though the state faces a budget shortfall, MacCaul says the program saves money in the long run by increasing access to preventive care, which helps people stay out of nursing homes and emergency rooms. For instance, a caseworker might help someone stay healthy by getting them a blood pressure monitor or glucose meter, she says.
The Health Homes program decreased the probability of a participant being admitted to a nursing home by 24 percent, according to a 2022 report by the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. Outpatient emergency room visits dropped by an average of 20 percent per year after participants had their first encounter with Health Homes.
MONEY FOR MEALS
AARP also is advocating to increase or prevent cuts to the state’s nutrition programs, which deliver Meals on Wheels to homes and serve hot food in community centers for older residents.
Evelyn Hallett of Vancouver sees an increased demand for meals. Three days a week, Hallett, who is 100, volunteers at the Luepke Senior Center in her hometown. She adds flowers and salt and pepper shakers to the tables, assists anyone who needs help and arranges live entertainment. “I’m kind of the hostess,” she says.
Hallett, who has been a volunteer for 20 years, was a beneficiary of Meals on Wheels for a year after she suffered a back injury during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the past year and a half, Hallett has seen the number of people who show up for the free lunches more than double to as many as 100 each meal. Some have dementia and can’t cook, she says. Others can’t stretch their dollars far enough with rising prices for groceries and other expenses. “They don’t have the money ... Our food banks are running out of food,” says Hallett, who is also a food bank volunteer.
The state earmarked $27.9 million for the 2025-2027 two-year budget that began July 1.
Cathy Knight, director of the Washington Association of Area Agencies on Aging, says the need is even more critical given that the state senior nutrition program was not fully funded.
Without sufficient funding for meals, Knight says, “People will go hungry.”
Cristina Rouvalis is a freelancer who specializes in profiles, business and issues involving older people.
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