Senate aging hearing: Experts urge using sports-medicine practices to prevent falls and keep seniors active

At a hearing of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, medical and community experts urged federal support for applying sports‑medicine practices — including structured strength training, balance work and multidisciplinary care teams — to prevent falls and improve health outcomes for older Americans.

The witnesses said the approach would shift care from treating injury after it occurs to preventing decline, and they called for stable federal funding for community programs under the Older Americans Act to scale proven interventions.

The push matters because falls are a leading cause of injury and death among older adults, generate large health costs and often remove seniors’ independence. Witnesses cited national data and local program results to argue that relatively modest investments in community prevention and workforce capacity can reduce downstream medical spending and preserve functioning.

Dr. Lyle Kane, an orthopedic surgeon and team physician at Andrews Sports Medicine Group, told the committee that sports medicine relies on a multidisciplinary team — certified athletic trainers, physical therapists, dietitians, primary‑care clinicians and orthopedic surgeons — and that a similar team model could identify and reduce fall risk among older adults. "Sports medicine is truly a team effort," Kane said, describing preparticipation risk profiling used with athletes and arguing that primary care visits currently miss musculoskeletal and balance evaluations that predict falls.

Kane described falls as the No. 1 cause of injury‑related death in older people and said many hip fractures are preventable with risk assessment, resistance training and other interventions. He testified that falls add roughly $50,000,000,000 annually to U.S. health care costs and recommended more training in musculoskeletal care for primary‑care physicians, expanded access to physical therapy and continued NIH funding for research.

Dr. Paul Legg, an orthopedic surgeon at Charleston Area Medical Center and Vandalia Health, emphasized resistance training to counter sarcopenia (age‑related muscle loss) and cited national statistics showing low adherence to federal activity guidelines: "Only 13.9 percent of adults age 65 or older meet federal activity guidelines," he said. Legg and others described strength and resistance work as safe for many older adults and said it improves muscle mass, bone density and metabolic health while lowering fall risk.

Former NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck described practical injury‑prevention techniques he learned as an athlete, including prehabilitation and practicing controlled falls to restore confidence after injury. Hasselbeck—who said athletic trainers and daily, consistent care were central to his long career—urged goal‑setting and community supports to normalize regular activity: "Your greatest ability is your availability," he told the committee, citing a maxim coaches used while he played.

Jennifer Raymond, chief strategy officer at AgeSpan, an area agency on aging in Lawrence, Massachusetts, outlined how local AAAs deliver evidence‑based programs such as A Matter of Balance and Enhanced Fitness. She provided program and cost figures: she said more than 14,000,000 Americans 65 or older suffer a fall each year, emergency departments recorded about 3,000,000 older‑adult fall visits in 2021, and total health care costs for older‑adult falls exceed $80,000,000,000 annually, with Medicare covering about 67 percent, Medicaid about 4 percent and older adults/families about 29 percent of those costs.

Raymond described how AAAs partner with health‑care providers to screen at‑risk older adults, refer them to local interventions (exercise classes, home modifications, medically tailored meals) and create shared care plans. She urged continued and increased federal support through the Older Americans Act — particularly Title III‑D (evidence‑based health promotion and disease prevention) and Title III‑B (supportive services) — and cited pilot funding from the Administration for Community Living and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as key to scaling programs.

Panelists also noted workforce constraints: Kane and other witnesses reported shortages of certified athletic trainers and limited insurance coverage for physical therapy visits, which they said limits access to fall‑prevention services. Several witnesses suggested strengthening training pathways (including postgraduate training in nonsurgical musculoskeletal care), increasing reimbursement for preventive services and expanding community‑based delivery models.

Committee members and witnesses discussed practical prescriptions: earlier and sustained activity (experts suggested people begin attention to balance and strength well before age 65), goal‑driven programs tied to daily function (for example, exercises to enable travel or caring for grandchildren), and the use of safe, third‑party‑certified supplements where clinically appropriate. Speakers advised clinicians and community organizations to tailor interventions to individual readiness and to prioritize evidence‑based group programs that show cost savings, citing a retrospective CMS analysis that found participation in an Enhanced Fitness program yielded roughly $1,000 per participant per year in healthcare savings.

No formal votes or committee actions were recorded during the hearing; witnesses and senators urged follow‑up steps including sustained appropriations, more research and expanded training for clinical and community providers. Several senators praised local models cited by the witnesses and expressed interest in incorporating fall‑prevention funding into upcoming appropriations and Older Americans Act reauthorization work.

Acknowledging the personal toll of falls and caregiving, witnesses closed by reiterating that preventing inactivity and strengthening community programs can preserve independence and reduce long‑term costs. The committee opened a question period following the testimony but did not adopt any binding measures at the hearing.