AARP Hearing Center
Welcome, Staff and Volunteers. This is the Policy Book PLUS. It includes italicized shaded text that provides more detailed policy and guidance, which can be used to explain our positions. This material is intended only for your use and is not intended to be printed or shared externally. It can, however, be drawn upon for testimony and other uses.
AARP is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for all as we age. We lead positive social change and deliver value to members through advocacy, service, and information. AARP’s public policies serve as the foundation of our work to fight for people 50 and older and help them choose how they live and age.
AARP represents the needs of more than 100 million older Americans with a wide range of life experiences and perspectives. Our members span four generations and reflect a variety of attitudes, cultures, and backgrounds. A growing number of them work full- or part-time because they want to or must. They are business owners, entrepreneurs, teachers, caregivers, and community leaders. Some are at the peak of their earning years with comfortable standards of living and others are living alone and struggling with minimal resources.
We concentrate on the issues most important to those in the 50+ community as they age: economic security, health and long-term care, caregiving, and livable communities. Developing public policy recommendations that effectively serve the needs and interests of such a broad group is a formidable task.
Our challenge is to reimagine the traditional model of aging and take advantage of the wisdom, experience, interests, and contributions that older Americans make to the social capital of the nation. We want an America where people 50 and older have access to the care, information and services they need to lead healthier lives. We seek an America where people 50 and older have the financial resources and opportunities to match their longer life expectancy. We want an America where people 50 and older are seen as an integral and inspirational asset to society. We envision an America where bedrock programs like Social Security and Medicare remain strong for all older Americans, as well as their children and grandchildren.
The 2025-2026 Policy Book integrates input from AARP members and other older Americans to develop these policies through a process overseen by the AARP Board of Directors.
A note about inclusive and respectful terminology: As a social mission organization with a long history of opposing discrimination in all forms, our goal is for terminology to be as respectful as possible. We intend in all cases to be inclusive rather than exclusive.