Press Release Announcement.

Age-Friendly Institute Launches AgeFriendly.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Age-Friendly Institute Launches AgeFriendly.com

  • Website captures the voice of older adults and aggregates “all things age-friendly” – Expert reviews combined with crowd-sourced recommendations
  • $1.5 million grant from The John A. Hartford Foundation, based in New York City, a private, nonpartisan, national philanthropy dedicated to improving the care of older adults. The leader in the field of aging and health, the Foundation has three areas of emphasis: creating age-friendly health systems, supporting family caregivers, and improving serious illness and end-of-life care.  Learn more at www.JohnAHartford.org
  • Partnership with SelectQuote provides access to professional inside sales center with experts to provide personalized health insurance options for older adults. 
  • Executive team includes former Massachusetts Secretary of the Executive Office of Elder Affairs Alice Bonner, Tim Driver and Jody Shue.  Board of Directors includes powerhouse profiles from Public Health, Aging Services and Media.

WALTHAM, Mass. – June 14, 2021 –  The Age-Friendly Institute today announced the launch of AgeFriendly.com, a website and brand designed to capture the voices of older adults and provide authoritative direction and unbiased reviews for individuals and families on age-friendly solutions.  Currently, there are over 40,000 reviews and ratings from older adults about communities in the United States.  In the future, there will be versions of AgeFriendly.com for other countries, in a variety of different languages. 

The term ‘age-friendly’ is well-established in professional circles. It describes environments that promote access to options, services and opportunities for people as they age, and that promote the inclusion and participation of older adults in all aspects of life. Experts have used the term “age-friendly” for the last fifteen years to describe and assess successful approaches to improving quality outcomes for older adults in cities, workplaces, homes and healthcare settings, and Google Trends reveals increasing adoption of the term in U.S. households as well.  

“AgeFriendly.com has been the missing element,” said Terry Fulmer, President of The John A. Hartford Foundation. “Now there is a scalable means for gathering ongoing feedback from older adults themselves.  It’s critical information coming from the true source – older adults – to match existing rubrics for what is age-friendly.”  The John A. Hartford Foundation last week announced a $1.5 million grant to the Age-Friendly Institute to support the development of an Age-Friendly Ecosystem by creating a digital hub and partnerships with stakeholders involved in the movements to make health systems, public health systems, cities, universities and employers more age-friendly.

“AgeFriendly.com is focused on leveraging established measures and crowd-sourced data to help people make better decisions.  And it’s about accelerating a movement,” said Tim Driver, President of The Age-Friendly Institute.  “Older adults can now more easily speak for themselves.  We’re fortunate to be able to leverage member databases with over 1.3 million older adults across America.” 

Health care and how to pay for it are among the top concerns for older Americans. The Age-Friendly Institute has chosen SelectQuote as its Partner to help older adults coordinate their choices.  SelectQuote is a leading provider of online comparison shopping and expert advice via its agent team and technology, which will be integrated into AgeFriendly.com. “We are committed to making sure older adults receive the best Medicare plan to meet their needs through our one-on-one conversations and proactive outreach,” said Tim Danker, Chief Executive Office of SelectQuote.  “I look forward to working with the Age-Friendly Institute to make sure that older adults’ needs are met through our services.”

The Age-Friendly Institute’s operating team includes Alice Bonner, PhD, RN, FAAN, the former Secretary of the Executive Office of Elder Affairs for Massachusetts.  Bonner is also a Senior Advisor at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and an adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing.  Institute President Tim Driver’s background includes operating digital media and services organizations aimed at the needs of older adults.  The Institute’s Executive Director is Jody Shue, MPH, who has worked in media and led Age-Friendly Rhode Island.  Shue is also an instructor at Boston University’s School of Public Health.  

The Age-Friendly Institute also operates the Certified Age Friendly Employer (CAFE) Program, which has designated employers as age-friendly since 2006.  In 2021, with people able and more willing to work longer, especially remotely, and with Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs on the rise, the CAFE program is on pace to double in size.

About The Age-Friendly Institute

Founded in 2019, the Age-Friendly Institute (institute.agefriendly.com) aggregates and elevates all things age-friendly.  It harnesses the voices of older adults through its website created for and with older adults: AgeFriendly.com.  This platform addresses the confusing landscape for families and individuals on how and where to find vetted programs and solutions for older adults.  It combines expert-developed systems for establishing what is age-friendly with reviews, ratings and comments from individuals.  Through its research and events, the Institute encourages cross-sector collaboration among aging services organizations.  The Age-Friendly Institute, formerly known as The Age-Friendly Foundation, also operates the Certified Age Friendly Employer (CAFE) program.

Media Contact:

Michelle Mastrobattista

For Age-Friendly Institute

michelle@brandparadise.agency

617-947-8401

Scroll to Top