Utah Commission on Aging outlines master plan and resources for older adults

Rob Anz, executive director of the Utah Commission on Aging, told the Utah Libraries Have You Covered podcast from the Utah State Library’s Blind and Disabled Recording Studios that the commission is implementing a three-year phase of a master plan for aging memorialized by the Legislature in 2023.

The plan, Anz said, organizes work across six priority areas: creating age-friendly environments, improving financial preparedness and security, strengthening health and education supports, promoting advanced-care planning and individual empowerment, expanding caregiving supports, and increasing access to technology and broadband across the state. “If you don't decide what your future's gonna look like, what your advanced care planning's gonna look like, someone will decide for you,” Anz said.

Why it matters: Utah’s 65-and-older population is growing rapidly, and the commission’s role is to coordinate research, policy and service delivery so municipalities and service providers avoid duplication and better meet demand. Anz described the commission as a communications hub that connects university research, state agencies and local organizations to streamline assistance for older adults and caregivers.

Anz described practical service links that the commission helps coordinate, including Meals on Wheels, respite care and SHIP counseling for Medicare and Medicaid decisions, and he urged Utahns who need help to use the commission’s online resource hub at utahaging.org to find local partners and supports. He framed the commission’s approach as a “no wrong door” policy: if people know a specific agency they should contact it directly; if not, the commission’s online portal can help them navigate to the right provider.

Anz warned that federal and state funding streams are vulnerable and essential for service capacity. He singled out the Older Americans Act and federal programs tied to Medicare and Medicaid as critical to maintaining services and urged sustained legislative support to keep those programs funded. He also said the state and nation lack a comprehensive plan for financing long-term care: “Insurance is not the solution. It's expensive. Very few people can afford it,” he said.

The commission, Anz said, was created in statute in 2005, moved into higher-education oversight in 2007, and now sits within the University of Utah’s Center on Aging while serving the entire state. The statute originally specified 21 mandatory stakeholders from government agencies; Anz said the commission now works with roughly 200–250 partner organizations across government, nonprofits and business sectors. He said the first three years of the master plan will focus on refining measures and reporting progress to the Legislature annually.

Anz also acknowledged accessibility gaps: while many libraries and partners offer braille and audiobooks, he said resources for people who are deaf or hard of hearing (signing resources) and some braille supports remain limited and are areas for future development.

The podcast hosts invited Anz to return for subsequent episodes to dive deeper into each of the plan’s priority areas. The program closed with a reminder of services offered by the Utah State Library for blind and disabled patrons and a pointer to library.utah.gov for more information.