Idaho Commission on Aging presents state needs assessment, prioritizes caregivers and loneliness reduction

The Idaho Commission on Aging presented its statewide needs assessment to the Senate Health and Welfare Committee and outlined priorities in its 2024–2028 state plan, emphasizing caregiver support, nutrition, technology assistance and loneliness-reduction activities.

Judy Taylor, director of the Idaho Commission on Aging, told the committee the commission conducted a needs assessment as required by federal and state law to inform the state plan. Taylor said the effort included in-person events around the state and an opportunity for older Idahoans to respond to the survey online, by phone or on paper. The commission received 1,109 unique responses from residents in 37 of Idaho’s 44 counties.

Taylor described a "high risk" respondent group made up of people who rated their quality of life as fair, poor or very poor. That group skews urban—66% urban and 34% rural in the commission’s analysis. Taylor said responses show caregivers represent a large share of the high-risk cohort: one finding showed 33% of high-risk respondents said they cannot care for…