The AoA, first headed by social worker and academician William Bechill (and now led by its 10 th executive officer, Assistant Secretary for Aging Josefina Carbonell), also emphasized research in the field of aging and encouraged demonstration and pilot programs to explore the most efficient and effective means of providing services to the older population in America. The administration mandated the creation of state and territorial units on aging for oversight (including the District of Columbia, Guam, the Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Samoa and the Virgin Islands) and, in key amendments passed in 1973, provided for establishment of area agencies on aging for more localized administration and delivery of OAA programs and services. That framework, which expanded in 1980 to include distribution of funds to Native Americans via 243 Tribal Organizations (1) (for the most part operating separately from area agencies), stands reliably in place today as the infrastructure of home and community services for older persons in this country.
(1) AoA Fact Sheets: American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians: www.aoa.gov/press/fact/alpha/fact_ain.asp