AARP Florida

Back around the holidays, you may have seen the Christmas commercial put out by the German grocer EDEKA - it's gotten 46 million views to date, and it's a bigger tear-jerker than even the holiday commercials put out by my home-state Publix. If you haven't seen it, grab a tissue, and watch it (it's embedded below). Then I'll tell you why I think it's a dramatic illustration of three major issues we in America have to address together, and soon.

TALLAHASSEE -- Across Florida, almost 2.7 million Floridians perform a labor of love, caring for older parents, spouses and other loved ones so they can stay at home—where they want to be—and out of costly institutions. It’s often more than a full-time job, and for millions of these caregivers, the responsibilities are overwhelming.

Washington, DC— Today AARP praised Congress for passing, and President Obama for signing into law, the bipartisan Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) which addresses the disturbing trend of rising pedestrian fatality rates. The FAST Act will provide states and communities with the certainty they need to plan transportation projects that, in many cases, have been delayed or constrained. AARP is pleased that, for the first time, the bill specifically targets standards for the design of roads that safely and adequately accommodate all users of the transportation network, regardless of how they may travel. Until today, Congress had not passed long-term surface transportation legislation in a decade.

News From AARP Florida

News From AARP and the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay

ST. PETERSBURG, FLA. – November marks National Family Caregivers Month, a time to recognize the 40 million Americans – including more than 2.7 million from Florida – who help older parents, spouses, and other loved ones live independently at home, where they want to be.

With the holiday giving season approaching, a new survey from the AARP Fraud Watch Network found that 70 percent of consumers failed a quiz about how to stay safe from common holiday scams, and many are regularly engaging in risky behaviors which could leave them at risk of being victimized by con artists.

Are you one of the 2.8 million Floridians caring for a parent or loved one? If you said “yes” then you’ll want to participate in AARP’s Virtual Family Caregiving Fair on Nov. 19.

By Jeff Johnson

AARP's Florida state director, Jeff Johnson, issued the following statement on news that there would be no cost-of-living increase for Social Security beneficiaries for 2016: