Elderly Policy Particularism and the New Social Services

Abstract

Title XX of the Social Security Act represents an important source of social service assistance for the elderly. As a major change in our nation's social services policy, however, Title XX has not necessarily led to greater access for the elderly to social services. The block-grant nature of the program implies a devolution of policymaking power to states, and many states have used these new powers to recategorize their Title XX grants, most often to specify assistance for nonaged groups. Other states have continued to distribute social services funds according to historical patterns emphasizing nonaged service provision in those states. In addition, Title XX's flexible eligibility requirements have not noticeably improved the elderly's access to social services. Presently, the national government is in the process of developing regulations to counteract age discrimination in programs receiving federal financial assistance. Given our analysis in this article, those elderly concerned about Title XX confront a difficult choice: Should they pursue particularistic policies which specify benefits for the elderly or should they support universalistic policies benefiting a broad range of groups?