Sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), this annual design competition is open to builders, developers, architects, interior designers and other professionals who have developed exemplary senior housing facilities, including NAHB members. These projects must be available to the public either on sale or for rent by the entry deadline on October 4, 2002.

There are various categories of facilities in the competition including: small active adult community, community center interior design for small active adult community, active adult home model merchandising, special needs housing, and affordable seniors apartments/ townhouse community. Categories are differentiated by size of the facility and types.

The entries will be judged in November 2002 at the NAHB Seniors Housing Council offices in Washington, D.C. All entrants will be notified in December 2002 whether or not they are the finalists, and award will be presented at the Best of Seniors' Housing Design Awards Luncheon in January 2003 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

For more information, contact NAHB Seniors Housing Council at 1800-368-5242 ext. 8386.

An excellent and valuable book on assisted living designs with over 200 photographs and drawings illustrating the qualities of successful assisted living models and offering solutions to existing challenges. This latest work by Victor Regnier, a highly acclaimed authority in the design of housing for elderly population is influential to the current and future design of long-term care facilities.

Thanks and acknowledgements are noted to professional colleagues and friends including staff members of the National Resource Center on Supportive Housing and Home Modification, and especially to Maria Henke who helped reviewed an early draft.

The book targets on the recent development to accommodate older adults' increasing preference to "age in place", in more home-like environments instead of the traditional nursing homes. Offering multiple design ideas, from the exterior site, interior specification, lighting, to therapeutic outdoor spaces, this book is a comprehensive guide for professionals involved in designing and building accessible housing for older people.

In addition, the clear organization of the content makes the book easy to browse, search, and use as a reference. There is also a collection of photographs on noteworthy buildings from Europe and the United States that have fully integrated accessible design concepts, with detailed descriptions of their key characteristics.

Designed for Assisted Living is available online from the Wiley Publishers at http://www.wiley.com/cda/product/0,,0471351822,00.html.

Commission on Affordable Housing and Health Facility Needs for Seniors in the 21st Century was established last year to assess the growing need of affordable senior housing, especially for those who need long-term care. In a hearing held last month with the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Commission presented the preliminary findings on long-term housing crisis.

The Commission noted the relationship between long-term healthcare needs and affordable housing for seniors is unquestionable. Their finding showed that 20 percent of seniors have significant long-term care needs in the U.S., and the 57 percent of seniors who rent pay more than 30 percent of their income for housing and are also likely to need some form of health care.

The lack of affordable long-term care facilities affects especially the low-income seniors. While some states use Medicaid waivers to fund selective home-based services, they are only available to very low-income seniors. Many seniors have income below the Area Median income, yet they are not Medicaid-eligible to benefit from Medicaid waiver programs. On the other hand, for Medicaid recipients, the wait list for government subsidized assisted living is often too long.

These key issues presented remain to be a major crisis for seniors in the nation. Commissions and other advocates for elderly housing issues will continue their effort in bringing information and tools to the Senate to address such issue.

(Source of article is from the U.S. Senate website at http://banking.senate.gov.)

At a recent committee hearing, U.S. Senator John Breaux, a Louisiana Democrat addressed the issue of a lack of government-subsidized care for in-home and community long term care for seniors. Currently, government-subsidized care is available mostly for nursing home patients, and seniors who wish to receive care at home, in adult day-care program or in assisted living facilities have limited government-assisted funding resources.

In Louisiana for example, about 25,000 low-income seniors are living in nursing homes subsidized by Medicaid because this state and federal joint program pays for about 80 % of nursing home care in Louisiana. States have to apply for Medicaid waivers to use Medicaid dollars on alternative care to nursing homes. However, source from Tulane's School of Social Work expressed that a nursing home lobby in Louisiana helps prevent the expansion of Medicaid waiver on non-nursing home care. Senator Breaux proposed states to offer seniors more financing options for long-term care.

In response to the financial issues in Louisiana, Legislature has approved approximately $41.2 million new Medicaid funds to seniors in alternative care facilities. The new funding will serve approximately 3,000 low-income seniors out of the 4,000 who are on the waiting list for alternative services.

In addition to the increase in Medicaid waiver funding, Legislature also increased Medicaid payments to nursing homes. This dual funding is made possible from the exceptional Medicaid surplus money from a previous year.

(Source of article is taken from The United States Senate Special Committee on Aging website July 1, 2001 news.)