We are pleased to share updates on our work in the second quarter of 2026. The Division 20’s president invited us to say a few things about advocacy. In the Pikes Peak Model for Training in Professional Geropsychology (2009), one foundational competency skill was to “apply scientific knowledge to geropsychology practice and policy advocacy.” Although the term “advocacy” was not included in the subsequent Pikes Peak Geropsychology Knowledge and Skill Assessment Tool (2013), advocacy remains an important value among many psychologists in the aging and adult development field-- both in advocating for the well-being of older adults, as well as ongoing funding and support for aging research and education. In addition to the specific section below, we encourage you to refer to these APA and GSA resources:
- APA Advocacy Resources
- GSA Advocacy Resourcesopens in new window
- Senate Special Committee on Agingopens in new window
Policy, Practice, and Advocacy
CONA submitted the revised Resolution on Family Caregivers to APA leadership in late April 2026. We are awaiting approval from council leadership to put the resolution on the agenda, and we are hopeful it will be adopted at the August Council meeting. If you are a council member or know someone who is, please help spread the word and help us get the vote! CONA met with APA’s editorial team to share the approved revised Resolution on Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues. We are hoping to see it featured in at least one upcoming Monitor on Psychology article, as well as in the Practice Update.
CONA responded to APA calls for public comments on proposed revisions of Section D.5 3 of the Commission on Accreditation (CoA) Implementing Regulations, APA’s Guidelines for Psychological Practice for People with Low-Income and Economic Marginalization, and COPPS Professional Practice Guidelines: Framework for Developers and Users.
CONA bid farewell to Serena Davila, JD, long-time Advocacy staff liaison to CONA, and welcomed ongoing support from K. Conwell Smith, Karen Studwell, JD, and Andrew Strickland, JD. CONA submitted public comments to APA’s Advocacy office to inform APA’s response to the Framework for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) RFI Strategic Plan for 2027–2031. We also encouraged psychologists and students in the aging field to support other Advocacy initiatives, e.g., supporting the bipartisan ADAPT Act ( H.R.4484 / S.2356) to increase accessibility of psychological services by expanding Medicare coverage for certain behavioral healthcare services, and urging Congress to reject the administration’s FY 2027 budget proposal that seeks a complete dissolution of the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences (SBE) Directorate and a 54% cut to the National Science Foundation (NSF).
We are also assisting APA Advocacy staff in advocating for the Increasing Mental Health Options Act (S. 669), which is a bipartisan federal bill designed to improve Medicare beneficiaries' access to services provided by clinical psychologists, particularly older adults and people in long-term care settings.
With the support of APA’s Advocacy office, CONA submitted a written testimonial to the Senate Special Committee on Aging regarding older adults in the workforce in April 2026. We have also been reviewing and supporting other initiatives at the congressional level that focus on older adults and artificial intelligence, as well as policies that impact long-term care and other services for older adults, caregivers, and people with disabilities.
Public Interest and Public Affairs
CONA is finalizing updates to the committee’s webpage to be in line with other Board for the Advancement of Psychology in the Public Interest (BAPPI) pages. We are working on adding new content to the Explore the Careers in Aging Roadmaps, and updating some references in the Psychological Services in Long-Term Care Resource Guide and the Psychotherapy and Older Adults Resource Guide. Pending a favorable outcome and adoption of the revised Resolution on Family Caregivers this August, we will continue to work with BAPPI and APA leadership to obtain commitment and resources to update the Caregiver Briefcase, and to re-initiate conversations to garner support for the development of professional practice guideline with caregivers.
Education
In partnership with Division 20’s program co-chair, CONA compiled a document listing all APA Annual Convention events that feature aging topics. We will host a CONA Conversation Hour at 6:30 p.m. within the joint Aging Social Event (Co-sponsored by Division 20 and Division 12-2) on Friday, August 7, 2026, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. A panel of current and former CONA members will share their experiences about professional service as a mentoring and networking opportunity. CONA graduate student member Cristina Pinheiro, through the Geropsychology Specialty Council, has been supporting the Gero The Next Generation initiative @GeroTNG to enhance student engagement.
Nominations and Award
We are awaiting formal announcement of CONA (2027-2029) appointment by APA elections in the coming weeks. The portal for CONA member nominations (2028-2030) will open in November 2026. We will be recruiting 1 graduate student member and 2 professional members.
We are honored to announce Dolores Gallagher-Thompson, PhD, ABPP, as the recipient of the 2026 CONA Award for the Advancement of Psychology and Aging. As a board-certified geropsychologist, Gallagher-Thompson has been an influential figure in the field of psychology and aging for more than four decades. In addition to being a prolific researcher, she has been an educator and mentor to many of us, especially in the areas of cognitive behavioral therapy with older adults and caregiving. Her work and her collaboration with others have significantly shaped our practice and understanding of multicultural aging and caregiving. A former CONA member (2008-2010), Gallagher-Thompson has remained active with APA. In 2025, she was appointed to a multidisciplinary panel to update the 2019 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Depression Across Three Age Cohorts. In addition, she has been supporting CONA’s ongoing efforts to update APA’s caregiver resources. We look forward to recognizing her at the APA Annual Convention on August 7, 2026.