Casey Introduces Legislation to Improve Senior Economic Security

Bills include protections against workplace discrimination and combatting food insecurity for seniors

An estimated 5.2 million older adults struggle to put enough food on the table 

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, introduced two bills to support senior economic security across the Nation, including protections from workplace age discrimination and increased access to healthy, affordable meals for older adults and adults with disabilities. An estimated 5.2 million older adults struggle to put enough food on the table and many older Americans have trouble finding consistent employment due to age discrimination.

“After fighting in our wars, teaching our children, and building our Nation, older Americans deserve to age with dignity. We owe it to the generations who came before us to support them into their golden years,” said Chairman Casey. “My bills would ensure seniors are protected from age discrimination on the job and can benefit from better access to federal programs providing healthy food. As we build a better economy, we must ensure older Americans are given the support and protection they need to be economically secure.”

The Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (POWADA) would level the playing field for older workers and restore safeguards against age-based discrimination. POWADA would restore critical protections in the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and make it easier for employees to prove when they are a victim of age discrimination in the workplace. Older workers are currently required to meet a significantly higher burden of proof when alleging age discrimination than is required of workers alleging other forms of workplace discrimination.

Many older adults, adults with disabilities, and grandfamilies who are eligible for federal nutrition assistance face significant barriers to navigating a complex system. The Senior Hunger Prevention Act would tear down those barriers by increasing the minimum monthly SNAP benefit for all participants and simplifying application and certification processes in nutrition programs so that beneficiaries don’t fall through the cracks due to administrative or logistical challenges.

The Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act is co-led by U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IL) and cosponsored by U.S. Senators Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Susan Collins (R-ME), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).

The Senior Hunger Prevention Act is co-led by U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and John Fetterman (D-PA). It is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).

Read more about the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act here.

Read more about the Senior Hunger Prevention Act here.