Senior Tar Heel Legislature welcomes Rep. Frank Sossamon

The NC Senior Tar Heel Legislature  welcomed Rep. Frank Sossaman to the NCSTHL General Session held in Raleigh June 4-5.

The NCSTHL delegate and alternate representing Granville County, Annette Myers and Sue Bryant respectively, said, “Representative Sossaman provided many helpful insights on advocating for issues concerning the older adults of North Carolina. We appreciated learning about STHL and it purpose and goals. His regional support is important to us.”

The NCSTHL was created to advise the NC General Assembly regarding the needs of older adults, and to recommend impactful legislation to improve their lives. The advocacy role of the NCSTHL is now more important than ever with the increase in the number of older North Carolinians.

North Carolina ranks ninth in the nation in both overall populations and the age 60 and over segment. In addition, 88 of NC’s 100 counties now have more people age 60+ than under age 18.

Representative Sossamon joined a panel of NCSTHL members discussing ways to improve advocacy efforts. Other legislators were invited but unable to attend due to schedule conflicts. Representative Sossamon encouraged the NCSTHL members to meet with legislators in their home districts and to remind them that not only is the age 60+ population large and growing, but it is also the age group with the highest voting turnout rate. In Granville County in 2022, 26% of the population was age 60+, projected to grow to 30% by 2042, a growth rate of about 41% over the next 20 years. Myers and Bryant said, “Part of our meeting included identifying key issues for NC older adults that will eventually become resolutions to present to NC General Assembly in 2025. It is important work to identify the priorities that will best represent the interests and needs of older adults, and to remind our influencers that improving life for the elderly serves to improve life for all ages and through all stages of life.”

Jill Simmerman-Lawrence, newly appointed Deputy Director of the Division of Aging, also addressed the NCSTHL General Session. She reported on the All Ages All Stages NC (AAASNC) project, launched in May 2023 as a groundbreaking multi-sector plan to transform the infrastructure and coordination of services across multiple state agencies and departments. A preliminary plan has been presented to the governor that includes 160 recommendations to be distilled and developed for a final master plan. For more information, access www.ncdhhs.gov/all-ages-all-stages-nc-progress-report-governor/open . She also shared an update on the aging programs impacted by the state budget approved in 2023. Although the state is supporting many critical programs, such as Medicaid Expansion and housing improvement solutions, the budget does not include funding for any of the recommendations made by the NCSTHL in 2023.

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