Meals for Seniors | Volunteer Driver Coalition
Our 2026 Advocacy Priorities
m4a has defined the following key advocacy priorities for 2026. Download a PDF.
Senior Meals
One in two older adults is at risk for malnutrition. In 2024, the Minnesota Legislature provided a small amount of new base funding for home-delivered and congregate meal programs ($250K in SFY 26), but nowhere near the $11 million per biennium that is required to significantly address the needs of older Minnesotans from lower-income and rural communities. This was the first increase to the program’s base funding since its establishment in the 1990s.
Senior meal programs are the foundation of any state’s home and community-based system of services. They are essential to the health and well-being of older adults and support their ability to live at home. These programs provide nutritious food and human connection to older adults and serve as a vital solution to the escalating issues of senior hunger and isolation.
m4a supports:
- Increasing base biennial funding for the Minnesota Senior Nutrition Program by $11M.
- Utilizing administrative funding at 10% to develop innovative models, increase program efficiencies and ensure compliance with federal and state laws and regulations.
Transportation and Senior Support Services
According to AARP, older adults on average give up driving at age 75. This places them at risk of isolation and of not receiving needed health care. m4a advocates for establishment of a Supportive Services Program for older adults in greatest social and economic need to align with the targeting criteria of the federal Older Americans Act. Initial priorities for this new program are funding for transportation and homemaker services. These services, along with senior meals, are the foundational supports that are essential to older adults’ ability to live in their home or apartment as they face the common physical and cognitive challenges of aging.
m4a supports:
- Creating a Senior Support Services Program of the Minnesota Board on Aging and providing a $4M biennial appropriation with 50% of funds dedicated to assisted transportation.
- Allocating new funds to local service provider organizations via AAAs using the MBA’s established Intrastate Funding Formula and administrative infrastructure.
- Utilizing administrative funding at 10% to develop efficient models, coordinate with other state funded programs, and ensure accurate and timely reporting of utilization and program expenditures.
Minnesota Aging Pathways
The Minnesota Board on Aging partners with the regional Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) to deliver the Minnesota Aging Pathways service. AAAs provide information and assistance, resource coordination and education to older adults to help them make informed choices about services, housing options, Medicare and related health insurance products. Area Agencies on Aging deliver MAP services through local call centers, teams of social workers who make home visits and outreach workers and volunteers who deliver educational sessions in the community.
Older adults and their family caregivers across the country struggle to navigate the complex array of public and private programs that help older adults live healthy and secure lives at home. Medicare is a complex health benefit, and enrollees face critical choices every year during the Annual Enrollment Period about coverage options for medical care and prescription drugs. In 2024 and 2025, Area Agencies on Aging were unable to meet the information needs of older adults who tried to reach the MAP program. Thousands of calls and requests for assistance went unanswered.
m4a supports:
- Expanding the staffing capacity of Minnesota Aging Pathways through a legislative appropriation to meet the needs of older adults and family caregivers for information, Medicare guidance and resource coordination.
Support for Other Proposals Minnesota’s Area Agencies on Aging also support:
- Revisions to Sec 10.65 – Tribal consultations: Adding the Minnesota Board on Aging (MBA) to the list of state agencies authorized to conduct govt-to-govt consultations with Tribal Nations. This is essential due to the MBA’s responsibility for administering the Older Americans Act (OAA) funding in partnership with the MN Indian Area Agency on Aging (MIAAA).
- Proposals to develop and sustain services that family caregivers desire and will use to help them remain in their caregiving roles by reducing stress and burden.
- Proposals that expand access and availability of affordable services and housing options to enable older adults to live healthy and secure lives at home
- Proposals that prevent frequent emergency department visits and hospitalization of older adults.
- Proposals that protect the rights of older adults, support their decision-making, and reduce the likelihood that they will fall victim to fraud and scams.
Download the m4a’s 2026 Legislative Priorities.
Key Policy Areas
The following are key issues that we must address.
Protecting vulnerable adults from abuse and neglect
Vulnerable older adults are often out of sight and too easily overlooked. As memory fails or other physical or mental conditions impair judgment, older adults can become victims of fraud, abuse or neglect (including self-neglect). Abuse can come from those who are paid to care for older adults, whether in the elder’s home or a nursing or assisted living facility, or from family members or others associated with the older adult. Financial exploitation and schemes to defraud are often targeted toward older adults. Deeply ingrained ageism can be a contributing factor. Legislative action taken in 2019 significantly increased protections for older adults in nursing homes and assisted living but we are all responsible for and must be vigilant about protecting vulnerable adults from abuse.
Keeping older adults physically, mentally, socially and financially healthy
Increased longevity has provided opportunities for people to do more, be more, live more but with it has come an increase in chronic conditions and other health and social issues that can stand in the way of good quality of life. Older adults need access to both health care and social care in order to function as valuable members of society in which they can both contribute and be cared for. They also need education and support for preventative steps that will protect their health and well-being. As the population ages, there will be increased demand for home and community-based services, services that Minnesota’s AAAs are well-positioned to help organize and support.
Supporting family caregivers
Family caregivers are the backbone of the care system for older adults. According to AARP, 640,000 Minnesotans provide 540 million hours of care annually, which has an estimated economic value of almost 8.6 billion dollars per year. Family caregivers provide support that simply would not be possible if relying upon paid caregivers, yet they are stretched to their limits. Better support for family caregivers is a social and economic imperative.
Expanding the supply of affordable housing
Minnesota is on an unsustainable path related to affordable housing. This is true across age groups but is of particular concern for people 65 or older. According to the Minnesota Housing Partnership, more than 150,000 senior households, about one-third of households 65 or older in the state, pay more for housing than they can afford. Lack of affordable housing leaves many older adults struggling to make ends meet and has profoundly negative effects on health and well-being.
Enabling access to transportation
As Minnesota ages, access to transportation takes on increased urgency. A large portion of older adults, particularly rural and suburban residents, are at increased risk for isolation and immobility as they are no longer able to drive and public transportation is not available. Transportation options should allow older adults to travel independently. According to MinnesotaGo, issues center around three topics: mobility, affordability and safety. Volunteer drivers are an important part of the solution (see Volunteer Driver Coalition for information about supporting volunteer drivers.)
Reducing inequities and disparities for immigrants, people of color and Indigenous people
Older adults of color are at increased risk of health disparities and a multiple of factors that can interfere with quality of life. As the percent of people of color is on track to be 25 percent of older adults by 2036, it is increasingly important that our society address the inequities that produce shorter lifespans and greater health inequities in this population.
Ensuring opportunities for older workers
Many older workers are impacted by the economic downturn associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. The April 2020 unemployment rate for people 65+ hit an all-time high of 15.6 percent, quadrupling between March and April, 2020. The pandemic is not just a health risk for older adults it is also a risk to financial security. In addition, according to AARP, three in five older workers have seen or experienced age discrimination in the workplace. Yet, older works bring talent, experience and skills to the workplace. Many older adults do not have the savings needed for a secure retirement, and their ability to continue to work is important for their own economic security and for the economic security of our communities. Luckily, many organizations are starting to see that older adults are valuable assets as they create multigenerational teams.