National Leaders Convene June 8-11  for First Virtual Aging Conference in the COVID-19 Era  Age+Action to focus on key issues impacting older adults May 7, 2020 (Arlington, VA) - The National Council on Aging (NCOA), a trusted national leader working to ensure that every person can age well, has announced that its annual conference that brings together thought leaders in aging is going virtual this year.  The 2020 Age+Action Conference, June 8-11, originally scheduled for Dallas, TX, will now be turned into a virtual experience for hundreds of leaders from community-based organizations across the country to discuss trends and issues impacting older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.   With older adults and aging services professionals at higher risk for the virus, NCOA quickly worked to shift its conference from in-person to virtual. The event will feature over 150 sessions and 100 speakers, allowing professionals to connect, learn, and share best practices to better serve older Americans in their communities.  “Now more than ever, professionals who are serving our nation’s older adults need to come together to learn and share,” said Josh Hodges, NCOA Chief Customer Officer. “While we must be physically distant, we must stay professionally connected. That’s why we quickly moved to a virtual conference this year. Our local partners are grateful that they can stay safe and still stay connected, so they can continue their important work.” NCOA has seen a significant uptick in registrants from across the U.S. Current registration is at 700, and NCOA projects the final registrant count will be over 1,300. Educational sessions will focus on areas such as healthy living, economic security, innovation, and diversity. Highlights include: ●        COVID-19 Town Hall: NCOA Making an Impact in Communities●        Let’s Talk: Women & Money as We Age●        Honoring Aging Veterans: Helping Veterans Age in Place●        Today’s Digital Divide for Older Adults: Why Conventional Solutions Won’t Bridge the Gap The full agenda is located here.   During the COVID-19 crisis, NCOA has been active providing expert opinion and resources to help older adults stay healthy and financially secure, while supporting professionals in aging. NCOA has created a robust COVID-19 Resource Center at www.ncoa.org. Last month, the organization released an analysis on how the COVID-19 pandemic will impoverish millions of aging Americans. Earlier this week, it released findings from a survey of community-based organizations showing these local service providers are struggling to meet the shifting needs of older adults, but are pivoting to virtual programs. Press passes are available for the Age+Action 2020 Virtual Conference. Interested media should email maurisa@spottedmp.com for consideration. For more information about the conference, visit www.AgeAction.org.   About National Council on Aging The National Council on Aging (NCOA) is a trusted national leader working to ensure that every person can age well. Since 1950, our mission has not changed: Improve the lives of millions of older adults, especially those who are struggling. NCOA empowers people with the best solutions to improve their own health and economic security—and we strengthen government programs that we all depend on as we age. Every year, millions of people use our signature programs BenefitsCheckUp®, My Medicare Matters®, and the Aging Mastery Program® to age well. By offering online tools and collaborating with a nationwide network of partners, NCOA is working to improve the lives of 40 million older adults by 2030. Learn more at ncoa.org and @NCOAging.