12/22/2025

Closing Out 2025: A Year of Progress and Perspective

As we close out 2025, it is a good moment to reflect on where we have been and where we are headed.

This year brought real progress for o4a and Ohio’s Area Agencies on Aging. It also brought complexity and uncertainty, along with moments that required patience and persistence. Through it all, AAAs stayed focused on the core mission: serving older Ohioans and Ohioans with disabilities in ways that are practical, person-centered, and strongly grounded in local communities.

What We Accomplished Together

Even in a challenging environment, there is a great deal to be proud of.

This year, we launched a new o4a website, giving us a clearer and more modern way to share information, highlight member work, and communicate the value of the AAA network. We convened an advocacy conference during the state budget process, including a legislative reception, and held our 36th Annual Conference in October. Together, these gatherings created important space for learning, honest dialogue, and relationship-building across Ohio’s aging network.

We also saw important success in the state budget. Most notably, because of o4a and AAA advocacy, the General Assembly included $1 million in new state funding to support home and community-based services through the Senior Community Services Program. That investment matters. It helps people remain in their homes, supports local flexibility, and reinforces the importance of community-based solutions.

Alongside these wins, o4a continued steady advocacy for policies that strengthen home and community-based services, caregivers, and the broader aging services infrastructure. We also spent significant time working with state agencies and system partners as plans and expectations continued to evolve.

During 2025, o4a welcomed a new Chief Training Officer, strengthening our team and supporting continuity in our training and workforce development efforts. Our staff remains deeply committed to serving Ohio’s aging network and supporting the work happening at the local level.

These successes are possible because of the strength of Ohio’s aging network. AAAs across the state bring deep local knowledge, steady leadership, and a shared commitment to ensuring that older adults and people with disabilities receive the services and supports they need.

Looking Ahead to 2026

In 2026, Ohio will begin the launch of Next Generation MyCare Ohio, with the program transitioning and expanding statewide. This is a significant shift that will require coordination, flexibility, and close communication across agencies and partners. AAAs will play a critical role in helping make that transition work on the ground.

2026 will also be an election year in Ohio, with the governor and other statewide offices on the ballot, all Ohio House seats up for election, and a portion of the Ohio Senate. o4a will engage in nonpartisan advocacy efforts to ensure that aging policy issues, and the role of AAAs, remain visible to candidates throughout the campaign season.

Thank you to the AAA leaders, staff, board members, and partners who do this work every day, even as policy and funding environments continue to shift. Your commitment to supporting older Ohioans and Ohioans with disabilities with dignity, choice, and independence in their homes and communities makes a real difference across Ohio.

I am grateful to serve alongside you and look forward to the work ahead.

I wish you a restful holiday season and a strong start to the new year.

Beth Kowalczyk
CEO
Ohio Association of Area Agencies on Aging