Elderly individuals in the United States face unique forms of discrimination, social isolation, and financial deprivation. Many live in fear of or are subjected to abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
It is important to bring the concept of the individual into a concept of community, where we must make a holistic analysis of these problems and a communal effort to improve the lives of elderly people.
As elder law attorneys, we turn to any support that we can find, including legislation. The federal Older Americans Act is an overarching attempt at addressing the needs of elderly individuals in a communal manner.
About the OAA
The Older Americans Act (OAA) was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 as part of the Great Society programs and reforms that sought to provide an economic safety net and dignity to the poorest Americans. Other Great Society programs include food stamps, Medicare, Medicaid, Housing and Urban Development, and civil rights laws.
The Older Americans Act is codified at 42 U.S.C. 35.
The OAA pertains to elders aged 60 and older, with a focus on those with the greatest economic and social needs. It addresses needs ranging from food and housing security, healthcare resources, healthcare advocacy, civil rights, legal services, and prevention of elder exploitation, neglect, and abuse.
Julia Veenendaal, Marquette 2011, is a staff attorney with Legal Action of Wisconsin, Wausau. She assists elders and disabled individuals with Social Security, SSDI, SSI, Medicaid, FoodShare, and housing cases.
Income at or below 100% of the federal poverty level indicates “greatest economic need.” “Greatest social need” is a broad category that speaks to safety, basic needs, disability, and social isolation and discrimination. It encompasses physical and mental disabilities, HIV/AIDS status, housing instability, food insecurity, lack of clean water and utilities, lack of transportation, interpersonal safety, and other threats to independent living.
Reaching elders with the greatest social need also means attention, care, and services for those who experience social isolation due to race or ethnicity, religion, language barriers, sexual orientation, gender identity, or rural location. Native American and Native Hawaiian identity is addressed by specific provisions and programs in the Act.[1]
What the OAA Does
Congress states in its mission that the OAA must be “person-centered, trauma-informed,” with respect to services. This means that services should be provided through a program that uses a holistic approach to providing services or care; promotes the dignity, strength, and empowerment of victims of trauma; and incorporates evidence-based practices based on knowledge about the role of trauma in trauma victims’ lives.
The Administration for Community Living, an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, administers most of the OAA programs. Some examples of OAA entities and programs are Area Agencies on Aging, Aging and Disability Resource Centers, Long-Term Care Ombudsman Programs, the Senior Medicare Patrol, the State Health Insurance Assistance Program, the National Law Center on Elder Rights, the National Family Caregiver Support Program, and Meals on Wheels. There are also myriad other programs for volunteering and employment, transportation, home care supports, elder disease research, legal assistance, and programs to support the unique needs of Native Americans and Native Hawaiians.
Many of these goals are carried out through nonprofits that receive grant funding through OAA, such as the Administration for Community Living’s Administration on Aging.
The OAA provides grants to legal aid projects that serve elders. Legal aid attorneys take cases for which the private bar would not be compensated. For example, SSDI and SSI overpayment appeals do not result in back pay, which is the source of attorney fees for representation before the Social Security Administration. By contrast, an appeal of an initial claim for Social Security benefits, if awarded, will result in back pay where the attorney receives 25%, up to a cap. Therefore, OAA legal aid does not handle initial claims for SSDI or SSI-Disability.
Likewise, indigent people cannot afford to hire an attorney for eviction defense, and OAA legal aid projects provide housing advice and representation. While the private bar provides excellent pro bono services, the need is great, and legal aid provides some relief to both clients and the private bar. Clients receive free legal services, which takes pressure off the private bar, allowing private attorneys to focus on financial sustainability, which in turn supports more pro bono work. It is an intentionally complementary system.
The OAA in Practice: Legal Action of Wisconsin
I work for one such legal aid program, the Older Americans Act Legal Assistance Project at Legal Action of Wisconsin. My primary areas of practice are Social Security, Medicaid, and FoodShare consults and appeals. My colleagues focus on these areas as well as consumer protection law and landlord-tenant law.
Examples of our work include preventing long-term care Medicaid disenrollment, appealing FoodShare terminations, representing clients in eviction actions, obtaining reasonable accommodations in housing, advising and representing clients facing debt collection, and disputing SSDI and SSI overpayments.
On a weekly basis, I refer clients to the Aging and Disability Resource Center for assistance with health care enrollment, finding direct care services, better food security, and other needs.
OAA Funding
Unlike many of the Great Society programs, such as Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and food stamps, the OAA programs are not entitlements; rather, OAA is funded by congressional discretionary funding with reauthorization every five years.
The OAA is currently in the process of reauthorization. The U.S. Senate passed the Older Americans Act Reauthorization Act of 2025 in July 2026, and it is now pending in the House of Representatives. The total appropriation for the OAA in 2024 was over $2.3 billion, and congressional continuing resolutions have maintained similar funding until the reauthorization is finalized.
Why the OAA Matters
The OAA provides crucial funding to legal aid providers to help meet the basic legal needs of economically and socially vulnerable elderly individuals.
Legal Action’s Older Americans Act Legal Assistance Project is available to residents of Wisconsin as well as members of Wisconsin’s 11 federally recognized tribal nations.
Services are available by calling (855) 947-2529, or by applying for help online at legalaction.org.
Endnote
[1]See 45 CFR 1321.3. ↩
