Aging in General 

AARP. The American Association of Retired Persons.  In Illinois: AARP-Illinois. 

AARP Andrus Foundation. This site provides information on living healthy and living well. Practical and informative.

International Federation on Aging -- links approximately 151 associations that represent older persons in nearly 54 nations. It serves as a clearinghouse for information, practical applications, and the common concerns of the aging around the world.

National Aging Information Center (NAIC). A major resource on selected topics and issues in aging. On the NCOA website.

National Council on the Aging. Political news related to aging, programs, etc. Part of the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Family

Caregiver.com. Tips, resources, comfort, and a community of fellow caregivers. There is a special section for Alzheimer's caregivers.

Finances

Financial Aspects of Aging Research. Research on retirement income, consumer expenditures, etc. 

Kaiser Family Foundation. Two new reports examine private long-term care insurance from the perspective of consumers. Both reports are available online at http://www.kff.org/medicare .
    

Private Long-Term Care Insurance:  Who Should Buy It and What Should They Buy, by Mark Merlis, presents a framework for considering the feasibility, affordability and appropriateness of long-term care insurance for both working families who may be decades away from needing long-term care and for older adults who may require such care in the near future. 
    
Regulation of Private Long-Term Care Insurance: Implementation Experience and Key Issues, by Stephanie Lewis, John Wilkin, and Mark Merlis, focuses on consumer protections for individuals buying long-term care insurance.  The report describes how long-term care insurance is regulated and how many states have adopted key consumer protection standards. It also considers how well existing federal and state regulatory mechanisms address consumer protection issues and reviews issues that may require renewed attention as the market evolves.

Health

American College of Physicians. See the pages under Advocacy for useful material. Also, click here for a paper on the uninsured.

Campaign for Better Health Care. An Illinois organization working to create an accessible, quality health care system for all by organizing individuals and organizations.

Commonwealth Fund. A New York City-based private foundation supporting independent research on health and social issues.

Illinois SeniorCare and Circuit Breaker/Pharmaceutical Assistance provide help in paying for prescription drugs. Both are under the Illinois Department on Aging (go to Pharmaceutical Assistance in Illinois). Or phone the Senior HelpLine: 1-800-252-8966,

Lighthouse International: Introduction to Adaptive Computer Technology. Information on computer and other technologies for those with vision problems.

National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. Go to the VIPPS page for information on legitimate web sites selling prescription drugs (Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites). 

RealAge.com offers health tips, medical references, and reliable information on almost everything related to health and well-being. Take the RealAge Test to learn your biological age, as opposed to your age in years, and get suggestions as to how you can grow younger biologically. 

Illinois Government (also see Health and Work)

City of Chicago, Department on Aging.

Illinois Department of Aging.  Services, programs and information, including information on funds to help caregivers.

U.S. Government (also see Work)

FirstGov is a portal, a way of reaching all federal government web sites. FirstGov for Seniors is a portal to web sites related to seniors. Both are a good place to start if you want to search for something in the federal government. 

Many government web sites have URLs based on their acronyms. For example, www.nih.gov takes you to the National Institutes of Health site, www.ssa.gov to the Social Security Administration site, and so on

Work

Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), formerly the Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration (PWBA). Information on pension benefits and pension rights. See EBSA for information on planning for retirement.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (U.S.). Information on preventing and fighting age discrimination and other kinds of discrimination in the workplace.

Illinois Department of Employment Security. Information on unemployment compensation.

National Able Network. Help in job hunting, resume writing, job leads, and scholarship funds for retraining to people age 55 and over.

Able sponsors the Senior Community Service Employment Program -- on-the-job training in community service organizations, a transition into unsubsidized employment. Funded by the U.S. Department of Labor (go to Training, then to Seniors). To be eligible, you must be age 55 or older, be a member of a family which receives limited income, and meet federal low-income guidelines.

Women's Bureau, U.S. Department of Labor -- offers an Employer-Driven Older Women Worker Program, corporate mentoring for women business owners, and electronic mentoring.

Women

Chicago NOW (National Organization for Women) -- advocacy on women's issues.

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation of citizens in government. The League of Women Voters of Illinois web site lists chapters throughout the state. For Chicago, see League of Women Voters of Chicago.

Last updated October 18, 2003.