Elder law is an area of legal practice that specializes on issues that affect the senior population.
The purpose of elder law is to provide holistic legal advice that allows older persons and disabled individuals to preserve and protect their rights and values.
[3] The Older Americans Act (OAA), originally signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 14, 1965 (the same year Medicare was created), created the Administration on Aging (AOA), a division within the Department of Health and Human Services.
The OAA also authorized grants to States for community planning and services programs, funding for research, and demonstration and training projects in the field of aging.
The OAA of 2000 was amended on November 13, 2000, to include the National Family Caregiver Support Program, which was intended to help hundreds of thousands of family members who are struggling to care for their older loved ones who are ill or who have disabilities.