Posted on December 12, 2005 at 2:52 p.m.

BIRMINGHAM, AL — Melissa Mauser Galvin, Ph.D., associate professor of public health with UAB’s Department of Health Behavior, will serve as one of 18 Alabama voting delegates at the 2005 White House Conference on Aging (WHCoA), Dec. 11-14, in Washington, D.C. Entitled “The Booming Dynamics of Aging: From Awareness to Action,” the conference will focus on the first of 78 million baby boomers who will turn 60 years old in January.

“The dynamics of aging are changing rapidly, and baby boomers will have much different expectations for old age than their parents had,” Galvin said. “The recommendations from this conference will have a significant impact on how our country responds to the large transition of baby boomers into the senior population.”

Delegates will vote on resolutions in six broad areas of interest identified by the Conference Policy Committee, a 17-member bipartisan committee appointed by the president and Congress.

The six areas of interest on the agenda are:

• Planning Along the Lifespan
  
  
• The Workplace of the Future
  
  
• Our Community
  
  
• Health and Long Term Living
  
  
• Social Engagement and Civic Engagement
  
  
• Technology and Innovation in an Emerging Senior/Boomer Marketplace

WHCoA is held every decade, and the 2005 WHCoA is the fifth in history. Its purpose is to make recommendations to help guide national aging policies for the next decade and beyond.

Past White House Conferences on Aging have contributed to the establishment of several key programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, the Older Americans Act, the Supplemental Security Income Program, Social Security reforms and establishment of the National Institute on Aging.