Concerns grow about defunding vital senior support services

Long before the federal Department of Government Efficiency was formed by President Donald J. Trump, senior advocacy groups were sounding an alarm that they needed more, not fewer, resources to meet the needs of a growing population of senior Americans.

In a March 25 announcement, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced “a dramatic restructuring in accordance with President Trump’s Executive Order, Implementing the President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Workforce Optimization Initiative.”

The announcement said the “restructuring will address this and serve multiple goals without impacting critical services,” saving the taxpayers $1.8 billion per year through a reduction in workforce, “downsizing from 82,000 to 62,000 full-time employees.”

The federal budget proposal released May 2 proposes a 22.6% reduction to non-defense discretionary cuts and a 26% cut to the HHS budget.

With this restructuring, programs previously funded through the Administration of Community Living, under the Older Americans Act (OAA) since 1965, have been left hanging and are notably not mentioned in the 2026 budget.

HHS assured in a statement that reorganization of the “critical programs under the Administration for Community Living (ACL) that support older adults and people with disabilities will be integrated into other HHS agencies, including the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), ASPE, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).”

Meals on Wheels of America, a program that is funded almost entirely through the OAA initiative, is urging Americans to reach out to their respective representative in Congress to advocate for more funding, not less.

“The Older Americans Act (OAA) is the foundational source of federal funding for senior nutrition programs across the country, enabling the delivery of more than 251 million meals to 2.2 million older adults annually. However, as budget and appropriations negotiations are underway, OAA and other federal funding supporting Meals on Wheels programs is at risk of being cut, severely reducing their ability to provide this life-saving nutrition and socialization services to the seniors who rely on them,” according to the organization’s media release.

In a call to action to call Congress issued by the group on May 7, even flat funding would be “disastrous” because of increasing needs and rapidly increasing costs.

The group says it’s “fiercely advocating for at least 1.6067 billion” in the federal 2026 budget for their nationwide nutrition program. If funded, the group says the programs could collectively service 469 million meals to 4.1 older adults.

On April 10, Meals on Wheels of America President Ellie Hollander issued a statement saying it was “beyond disheartening to see both chambers of Congress push forward a budget reconciliation blueprint that sets the stage for harmful impacts to vital programs that help support older adults, including elimination of the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) program and significant cuts to SNAP and Medicaid.”

Hollander said that it’s disheartening because Meals and Wheels providers weren’t getting enough funding through this primary federal funding source under the OAA to keep up with the “rapid growth in the senior population and rising costs” and supplemental funding sources like the SSBG programs that help 37 states bridge the funding gaps are so critical.

Florida’s landscape
Seniors make up almost 22% of Florida’s growing population, according to US Census data.

According to the Florida Department of Elder Affairs website, the department has historically administered the federal OAA funds across Florida through 11 Area Agencies on Aging, which operate as Aging and Disability Resource Centers.

“These ADRCs function as a single, coordinated system for information and access to services for all Floridians seeking long-term care resources. The ADRCs provide information and assistance about state and federal benefits, as well as available local programs and services,” according to the website.

According to the last published budget, OAA funds flowing to our state totaled $193,424,124, making up more than 40% of the state’s budget for elder affairs.

According to testimony provided by Michelle Branham, Florida Secretary of Florida Department of Elder Affairs during a US Senate Committee held in March of 2024, Florida uses the OAA federal funds on:
1. Supportive services that promote seniors independence at home and in the community;
2. Delivery of meals to homes and congregate meeting locations;
3. Dementia care and cure initiatives;
4. Health and wellness programs for seniors and caregivers with the goal of averting nursing home placements;
5. Caregiver support, which includes respite or adult day care, training, counseling, legal aid and transportation.

Florida also utilizes the federal funding to support senior employment programs, elder abuse prevention programs and map out census data for each of the 11 state area Agencies on Aging according to Branham.

Despite that federal cash infusion, wait lists for Florida seniors on programs like Meals for Wheels funded under the OAA grow and continue to rely almost entirely on federal funding.

According to the state’s website, more than $52 million of that federal OAA funding to the state feeds more than 80,000 older Floridians “through community nutrition service programs from local senior services levies, donations, and volunteers. Most nutrition providers are private, non-profit agencies that serve meals at senior centers and other community locations.”

At the time of publication, the DOE had not responded to our inquiry about whether state funding could support the continuation of these programs if federal funding was cut back.

Linda Levin, CEO of ElderSource in Jacksonville, recently wrote a column published in the “Florida Times Union” urging citizens to advocate to maintain and increase funding for this work and opined that breaking up the current network that serves this population would be inefficient.

“Meals on Wheels is a proven public-private partnership designed to keep seniors healthy and independent in their own homes and out of costly health care facilities. In fact, our network’s key services reduce costs: we can serve a senior Meals on Wheels for an entire year for roughly the same cost as just one day in the hospital or 10 days in a nursing home,” Levin wrote.

“We implore Members of Congress to meet with their local Meals on Wheels providers and the seniors they serve to experience firsthand the profound impact and cost savings our programs make every day. As the House and Senate move toward a reconciliation bill, we hope our message to Capitol Hill is clear: any cuts or policy changes that exacerbate an already dire situation for millions of older Americans is unacceptable.”

Marion County’s needs grow
Seniors make up nearly 29% of Marion County’s growing population, according to US Census data.

Marion Senior Services is the local nonprofit that operates Meals on Wheels, serving 280 to 320 daily home deliveries via 70 volunteers. Additionally, it serves meals to 180 to 200 seniors annually across three community locations in Marion County.

Currently, the organization operates that program at an annual cost of $880,000. Fifty-seven percent of that budget, or $501,780, has historically been funded by the federal government under OAA. They receive $60,000 from the United Way for the program and then have to raise funds for the balance.

Currently, the MSS wait list has more than 900 Marion County seniors waiting for services. Some have been waiting on that list for as long as three years.

MSS Executive Director Jennifer Martinez was asked what would be needed to address the wait list.

“Improved assessment tools to identify needs; additional funding to support the needs identified,” she answered.
Martinez expressed hope that HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will decide that this service fills a critical need and continue funding it.

“For some shut-in seniors, our Meals on Wheels volunteers are the only visitors they see regularly,” she noted.

Meals on Wheels America and Florida’s DOE secretary Branham have acknowledged that as Americans retire, loose loved ones in death, face mobility challenges and declining health as networks shrink. The dilemma becomes more dire when older adults need more help from others but have fewer people to rely on.

The national program claims that “addressing loneliness and social isolation are central to the program and research goals of Meals on Wheels America. Ninety-three percent of local Meals on Wheels programs provide clients with a wide variety of regular companionship opportunities to help promote social connection, such as telephone reassurance, friendly visitor and pet programming.”

Want to help your local Meals on Wheels, you can donate here: bit.ly/MarionSupperClub

Meals On Wheels program at Marion Senior Services

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