ADRC director says division served 35,000 people in 2025 and highlights program impacts

Heather, director of the Division of Aging and Disability Services (S3), told the committee the division operates 12 programs through about 11.5 FTEs and 22 contracted providers and served more than 35,000 individuals in 2025 (counting duplicates across programs).

Heather summarized program-specific figures: adult protective services served 969 people in 2025 and closed about 964 cases; caregiver support served over 380 individuals with 115 receiving respite services; dementia-care programming served about 307 people with 149 closures in 2025; the friendly visitor program served about 726 people with roughly 2,500 volunteer hours; nutrition programming served about 926 individuals and delivered roughly 72,000 meals; and transportation services completed over 3,100 rides.

She said some year-to-year measures are affected by a transition to the state's client-tracking database and that the division started 2025 with a "clean start" for comparability. Heather highlighted a projection that the population aged 65 and older living with dementia could rise by about 23% between 2025 and 2030 and said the ADRC demonstrates cost savings: "for every dollar that we invest into that ADRC, there's a $2.71 savings to the health care system," which she said translated to more than $8,000,000 in health-care cost savings in 2025.

Supervisors asked for additional breakdowns (for example, repeat transportation users and clarifications on fall-related death tracking); Heather said she could provide follow-up data. The committee did not take further action on the presentation.