Annual Falls Prevention Awareness Week highlights proven ways to reduce the risk of falling

Contact:
Simona Combi
Public Relations Manager
571-527-3982
simona.combi@ncoa.org

September 12, 2024, Arlington, VA—The National Council on Aging (NCOA), the national voice for every person’s right to age well, is leading the 17th annual Falls Prevention Awareness Week Sept. 23-27, when community organizations nationwide will hold events to educate older adults about how to reduce their risk of a fall.

“Strength and balance exercises, home modifications, and annual eye and hearing exams are just some of the simple steps older adults can take to prevent falls,” said Kathleen Cameron, Senior Director at NCOA’s Center for Healthy Aging.

Falls are not an inevitable part of growing older, and we want people to know they can take action to reduce their risk.”

Throughout the week, state falls prevention coalitions, senior centers, and other local organizations across the country will offer evidence-based falls prevention programs, workshops, screenings, and more. Partners in cities such as Albuquerque, Seattle, Dallas, and Fort Worth will host events targeted to Native American, Japanese, Chinese, Black, and Hispanic older adults. Participants will explore home safety tips, strength and balance tests, Tai Chi demonstrations, medication reviews, and shoe fit screenings.

NCOA and its partners will also encourage individuals to use the Falls Free CheckUp®, a free online tool developed in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Visitors answer 13 yes/no questions to receive a personalized falls risk score and tailored recommendations and resources. The checkup is available in English and Spanish. Materials developed for each of the targeted populations and translated into Spanish, Chinese, and Japanese will be available on ncoa.org.

According to CDC, more than 1 in 4 Americans age 65+ falls each year. Falls are the leading cause of injury-related death in this age group, and they result in more than 3 million injuries, such as hip fractures, broken bones, and brain injuries. Each year about $50 billion is spent on medical costs related to non-fatal fall injuries and $754 million is spent related to fatal falls.

Since 2007, NCOA has hosted Falls Prevention Awareness Week to empower individuals with actionable steps to reduce their risk. This year, NCOA also hosted the Falls Prevention Summit on Sept. 9-10 to advance the national conversation about how to reduce falls among older adults. Policymakers, aging, and health care experts gathered to address gaps and identify new priorities for the National Falls Prevention Action Plan, which was last updated in 2015.

With funding from the U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL), NCOA leads the National Falls Prevention Resource Center, which supports the implementation and dissemination of evidence-based falls prevention programs nationwide. Last year, ACL awarded NCOA a $4.79 million grant to set up the first ACL Innovation Lab, which will further expand these efforts. In addition, NCOA was recently awarded a $2.5 million grant from ACL to provide capacity building grants for states to strengthen existing falls prevention coalitions or start new coalitions in states where they do not currently exist.

For more information, please visit www.ncoa.org/Falls.

HHS Grant or Cooperative Agreement is NOT funded with other non-governmental sources:

"This National Falls Prevention Awareness Week is supported by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $3 million with 100 percent funding by ACL/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACL/HHS or the U.S. Government.”

About NCOA 
The National Council on Aging (NCOA) is the national voice for every person’s right to age well. We believe that how we age should not be determined by gender, color, sexuality, income, or zip code. Working with thousands of national and local partners, we provide resources, tools, best practices, and advocacy to ensure every person can age with health and financial security. Founded in 1950, we are the oldest national organization focused on older adults. Learn more at www.ncoa.org and @NCOAging.