Aging Policy Experts Weigh in on Presidential Election

WORCESTER, Mass. – Robert Binstock and William F. Benson, two nationally recognized experts on aging policy and politics, will give a free, public lecture at the College of the Holy Cross on Tuesday, Oct. 26 at 4 p.m. in the Rehm Library. Binstock and Benson will discuss the roles that various issues affecting older Americans, like Social Security funding, Medicare, and prescription drugs, will play in the upcoming election. Seating is limited. Call 508-793-3468 for reservations.

Robert Binstock is professor of aging, health and society at Case Western Reserve University. He has served as director of a White House Task Force on Older Americans under President Lyndon B. Johnson, past president of the Gerontological Society of America and former chair of the Gerontological Health Section of the American Public Health Association. A political scientist, Binstock is the author of 23 books and more than 200 articles and book chapters that examine the politics of aging and public policies affecting older people.

William Benson is president of The Benson Consulting Group, a Maryland-based consulting practice specializing in aging and health care policy and program concerns. Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration on Aging from 1993 — 1998, he managed the administration's Medicare and Medicaid antifraud and abuse initiative, as well as the Office of Government Affairs and Elder Rights. Earlier in his career, Benson served eight years in various capacities in the U.S. Congress and 10 years in the California Department of Aging.

This event is organized by the Colleges of Worcester Consortium Gerontology Studies Program — which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. A joint initiative involving Holy Cross, Assumption College, Clark University, Worcester State College and UMASS Medical School, the program's mission is to develop an interest among undergraduate students in the field of aging and to provide these students with a basic understanding of the spectrum of needs, concerns and issues facing the elderly population today and in the years to come.

Support has also been provided by the Central Massachusetts Agency on Aging, and the following Holy Cross offices: the Center for Interdisciplinary and Special Studies, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College.