Issue Summary

• There are only a handful of long-term care communities that currently offer intergenerational connections with children.
• Research shows that intergenerational activities increase the health and well-being of both young and older participants, reduce social isolation, and create cost efficiencies. The concept is also popular—92% of Americans believe intergenerational activities can reduce loneliness across all ages and 85% would prefer care settings that foster intergenerational connections.
• Intergenerational connections are critical to combat the “epidemic of loneliness” as described by U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy. The National Institute on Aging estimates that the adverse health effects of loneliness equal that of smoking 15 cigarettes per day, and the National Academy of Sciences found that social isolation contributed to a 50% increased risk of developing dementia and a 59% increased risk of functional decline. One study found that grandparents who directly interacted with grandchildren were more likely to be alive five years later than those who remained uninvolved, and another concluded that they registered higher scores on cognitive tests.

Legislative Solution

In December 2023, U.S. Representatives Marilyn Strickland (D-WA), Bryan Steil (R-WI), and Ann McLane Kuster (D-NH) introduced H.R. 6835, the Care Across Generations Act. This bipartisan bill would help foster intergenerational connection through the establishment of a grant program for assisted living and all long-term care settings to

1. operate a qualified child care facility with-in the long-term care facility or contract with a qualified child care facility;
2. coordinate multigenerational activities between the integrated qualified child care facility and long-term care facility; and
3. build a new, or expand an existing, long-term care facility operated by the eligible entity for any of the purposes described in paragraphs (1) or (2).

Please join us in this effort by sending a message to your member of Congress urging their support of the Care Across Generations Act!