The Holocaust Survivors Assistance Program To ensure adequate resources to improve services provided under the Holocaust Survivors Assistance Program we urge Congress to increase annual funding to $5 million in FY 2017 and FY 2018. Background: In 2011, JFNA proposed the creation of a national grant program at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Administration for Community Living (ACL), to advance Holocaust survivor care through innovation and capacity building, and the broad dissemination of models and best practices throughout the Aging Services Network. In response, and with bipartisan support, Congress created the Holocaust Survivor Assistance Program in FY 2015, which is administered in partnership by the ACL and JFNA’s Center for Advancing Holocaust Survivor Care. Notably, the program emphasizes “person-centered, trauma-informed supportive services (PCTI)” which have proven to be effective intervention models for this population. Traumatic experiences (particularly early life trauma, such as malnutrition/starvation or the death of loved ones, as was experienced by survivors under the Nazi regime) have a direct impact on people’s behavioral and physical health and can lead to social problems and early death. Not only does this program pave the way for the application of PCTI supportive services for this most vulnerable population, but also in the future for other aging victims of trauma, such as refugee populations and victims of natural disasters. Current Status: The Holocaust Survivors Assistance Program was designed as a 5-year program, to be funded at $5 million annually with a local non-federal match equal to 40% of total project costs. In FY 2015 and FY 2016, Congress appropriated $2.5 million annually, or half the amount intended. The unmet demand for survivor assistance services provides strong justification for Congress to fully fund the program at $5 million. Presently, the program supports the work of 34 organizations in 18 states and 27 communities, including the Chicago area. National Justification: According to HHS, there are approximately 130,000 Holocaust survivors living in the United States – with an estimated 25 percent, or at least 30,000, living in poverty. Survivors are an average age of 84 years old. As a group, they are at increased risk of depression and social isolation. The ability to age in place is paramount because of the potential for re-traumatization from triggers commonly associated with institutionalization, such as loss of autonomy and control over daily decisions related to meals or freedom of movement, or potentially traumatic experiences with unfamiliar showers or uniforms. Access to home- and community-based services and a plan to age-in-place that take into account the adversity and trauma survivors experienced are essential to the quality and impact of care they receive. According to a recent survey conducted by The Blue Cardi, requests for help by U.S. Holocaust survivors increased by 20 percent in 2016. The program helps to meet the needs of Holocaust Survivors at a critical time in their lives. In at least another 20-25 years, we may be honoring the victims of the Holocaust without a single living survivor present. A modest increase in federal support, as we have requested, will bolster the program’s critical mission to help improve the lives of this fragile community. Local Justification: In 2010, the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago conducted a study that found that the Chicago metropolitan area is home to approximately 6,150 Holocaust survivors, many of whom are poor and in poor health. One in three survivor households reports living at or just above the poverty level, compared to 13 percent of other households with older adults. Seventy-four percent of survivors report their health to be “poor” or “fair,” compared to 31 percent of non-survivor older adults. They are also more than twice as likely to report that they or someone in their household needs assistance with daily living tasks. As a result of this grant program, Holocaust Community Services (HCS), a program between CJE SeniorLife (CJE), the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, and Jewish Child and Family Services supports nearly 900 survivors with a range of social support, financial assistance, and/or linkage with community resources and the demand is growing. Chicago has a relatively young survivor population—40 percent of HCS clients are under age 79. Eighty-six percent of clients are from the former Soviet Union and tend to be younger, poorer, and in worse health after suffering further under the Soviet regime. The program now maintains a service wait list between 250-300 survivors, nearly 90 percent of whom are Russian speaking. With so many “young” survivors who will live for many more years, their supportive service needs will increase as they age. For these reasons, the Holocaust Survivors Assistance Program is of particular importance to the Chicago Jewish community, as demand necessitates the need for improved and expanded survivor assistance services. Through this federal grant, CJE has launched its Holocaust Community Services’ Outreach Program, an innovative community-based program that promotes well-being in physical and emotional/mental health. In addition, it increases service accessibility by bringing mental health and support services to survivors in their own language and locations. It includes three primary components: community health education programming; in-home and community-based mental health counseling and clinical case-management; and isolation-reduction programs. Legislative Ask: We urge Congress to increase the annual appropriation for the Holocaust Survivors Assistance Program from $2.5 million to $5 million in FY 2017 and FY 2018 to ensure adequate resources to improve and expand services for Holocaust survivors, a vulnerable population that relies on this critical safety net program. For further information, please contact Lisa Shuger Hublitz, Washington DC Office Director, Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago, at 202-466-7090 or [email protected] Established in 1900, the Jewish United Fund/Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago supports a network of more than 70 health and social service agencies that assist over 500,000 Chicagoans of all faiths and millions of Jews in Israel and 70 countries around the world. JUF is the central planning and fundraising arm of Chicago’s Jewish community, allocating more than $150 million annually in support of vital programs that feed, clothe, house and otherwise aid those in greatest need. The Jewish Federations of North America represents 148 Jewish Federations and over 300 Network communities, which raise and distribute more than $2 billion annually for social welfare, social services and educational needs. The Federation movement, collectively among the top 10 charities on the continent, protects and enhances the well- being of Jews worldwide through the values of Tikkun Olam (repairing the world), Tzedakah (charity and social justice) and Torah (Jewish learning). i The Blue Card was established by the Jewish community in Germany in 1934, to help Jews already being affected by Nazi restrictions through loss of jobs, forcibly closed businesses and other forms of oppression. .