On November 1, 2023, the Vermont Department of Health released a draft of their MPA for public comment. This initiative, called Age Strong Vermont, is a 10-year visionary plan with strategies for making Vermont a great place for all ages and stages of life. The plan focuses on improving all aspects of life, including residents’ financial, social, and medical well-being, as well as creating local communities that are vibrant and resilient. Key objectives and strategies of the plan include affordable aging, healthy aging for all, social connection is key, infrastructure for the future, valuing family care partners, the fight for justice, and strengthening systems of support.
Vermont’s plan also emphasizes the importance of Age Strong models at the local level – recognizing key partners to success such as regional planning commissions and local town government along with local coalitions seeking to make age-friendly changes in their communities. Two Vermont communities that have already undertaken this work include the City of Burlington and a coalition within Windham County, called Windham Aging. Windham Aging is a collaborative of local organizations and community leaders working together to address the county’s changing demographics to ensure Vermonters in the region can age well, with a particular focus on social determinants of health as a driver of outcomes. In June, two representatives from Windham Aging were featured in an episode of the American Society on Aging (ASA) Future Proof Webinar: Cross-Sector Planning for Aging at the Local and State Levels. Watch a recording of the webinar here.
MPA development efforts in Vermont began with the passage of the Older Vermonters Act in 2020, which called on the state to create an Action Plan for Aging Well. Vermont was also a part of the first cohort of states to participate in the MPA Learning Collaborative, led by the Centers for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) and supported by West Health, The SCAN Foundation, and the May & Stanley Smith Charitable Trust. Since then, the Advisory Committee for the plan has provided guidance and oversight of the development, implementation and monitoring of the plan. Over two years, the Age Strong Vermont Advisory Committee sought broad stakeholder engagement including a statewide survey, public listening sessions, focus groups with historically marginalized populations, the Age Strong VT website, and the annual Vermonter Poll. Through these efforts, Vermont has become the latest state to release their MPA. Read the draft of the plan he
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