Safety of Seniors Act of 2007
PL 110-202 (S.845), enacted 04/23/2008

122 STAT. 697 
PUBLIC LAW 110–202—APR. 23, 2008 
Public Law 110–202 
110th Congress 
An Act 
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to expand and intensify 
programs with respect to research and related activities concerning elder falls. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Safety of Seniors Act of 2007’’. 
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO THE PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE ACT. 
Part J of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
280b et seq.) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating section 393B (as added by section 
1401 of Public Law 106–386) as section 393C and transferring 
such section so that it appears after section 393B (as added 
by section 1301 of Public Law 106–310); and 
(2) by inserting after section 393C (as redesignated by 
paragraph (1)) the following: 
‘‘SEC. 393D. PREVENTION OF FALLS AMONG OLDER ADULTS. 
‘‘(a) PUBLIC EDUCATION.—The Secretary may— 
‘‘(1) oversee and support a national education campaign 
to be carried out by a nonprofit organization with experience 
in designing and implementing national injury prevention pro-
grams, that is directed principally to older adults, their families, 
and health care providers, and that focuses on reducing falls 
among older adults and preventing repeat falls; and 
‘‘(2) award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements 
to qualified organizations, institutions, or consortia of qualified 
organizations and institutions, specializing, or demonstrating 
expertise, in falls or fall prevention, for the purpose of orga-
nizing State-level coalitions of appropriate State and local agen-
cies, safety, health, senior citizen, and other organizations to 
design and carry out local education campaigns, focusing on 
reducing falls among older adults and preventing repeat falls. 
‘‘(b) RESEARCH.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may— 
‘‘(A) conduct and support research to— 
‘‘(i) improve the identification of older adults who 
have a high risk of falling; 
‘‘(ii) improve data collection and analysis to iden-
tify fall risk and protective factors; 
‘‘(iii) design, implement, and evaluate the most 
effective fall prevention interventions; 
42 USC 280b–1f. 
42 USC 280b–1c. 
42 USC 201 note. 
Safety of Seniors 
Act of 2007. 
Apr. 23, 2008 
[S. 845] 
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122 STAT. 698 
PUBLIC LAW 110–202—APR. 23, 2008 
‘‘(iv) improve strategies that are proven to be effec-
tive in reducing falls by tailoring these strategies to 
specific populations of older adults; 
‘‘(v) conduct research in order to maximize the 
dissemination of proven, effective fall prevention inter-
ventions; 
‘‘(vi) intensify proven interventions to prevent falls 
among older adults; 
‘‘(vii) improve the diagnosis, treatment, and 
rehabilitation of elderly fall victims and older adults 
at high risk for falls; and 
‘‘(viii) assess the risk of falls occurring in various 
settings; 
‘‘(B) conduct research concerning barriers to the adop-
tion of proven interventions with respect to the prevention 
of falls among older adults; 
‘‘(C) conduct research to develop, implement, and 
evaluate the most effective approaches to reducing falls 
among high-risk older adults living in communities and 
long-term care and assisted living facilities; and 
‘‘(D) evaluate the effectiveness of community programs 
designed to prevent falls among older adults. 
‘‘(2) EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT.—The Secretary, either directly 
or through awarding grants, contracts, or cooperative agree-
ments to qualified organizations, institutions, or consortia of 
qualified organizations and institutions, specializing, or dem-
onstrating expertise, in falls or fall prevention, may provide 
professional education for physicians and allied health profes-
sionals, and aging service providers in fall prevention, evalua-
tion, and management. 
‘‘(c) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.—The Secretary may carry out 
the following: 
‘‘(1) Oversee and support demonstration and research 
projects to be carried out by qualified organizations, institu-
tions, or consortia of qualified organizations and institutions, 
specializing, or demonstrating expertise, in falls or fall preven-
tion, in the following areas: 
‘‘(A) A multistate demonstration project assessing the 
utility of targeted fall risk screening and referral programs. 
‘‘(B) Programs designed for community-dwelling older 
adults that utilize multicomponent fall intervention 
approaches, including physical activity, medication assess-
ment and reduction when possible, vision enhancement, 
and home modification strategies. 
‘‘(C) Programs that are targeted to new fall victims 
who are at a high risk for second falls and which are 
designed to maximize independence and quality of life for 
older adults, particularly those older adults with functional 
limitations. 
‘‘(D) Private sector and public-private partnerships to 
develop technologies to prevent falls among older adults 
and prevent or reduce injuries if falls occur. 
‘‘(2)(A) Award grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements 
to qualified organizations, institutions, or consortia of qualified 
organizations and institutions, specializing, or demonstrating 
expertise, in falls or fall prevention, to design, implement, 
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122 STAT. 699 
PUBLIC LAW 110–202—APR. 23, 2008 
and evaluate fall prevention programs using proven interven-
tion strategies in residential and institutional settings. 
‘‘(B) Award 1 or more grants, contracts, or cooperative 
agreements to 1 or more qualified organizations, institutions, 
or consortia of qualified organizations and institutions, special-
izing, or demonstrating expertise, in falls or fall prevention, 
in order to carry out a multistate demonstration project to 
implement and evaluate fall prevention programs using proven 
intervention strategies designed for single and multifamily resi-
dential settings with high concentrations of older adults, 
including— 
‘‘(i) identifying high-risk populations; 
‘‘(ii) evaluating residential facilities; 
‘‘(iii) conducting screening to identify high-risk individ-
uals; 
‘‘(iv) providing fall assessment and risk reduction inter-
ventions and counseling; 
‘‘(v) coordinating services with health care and social 
service providers; and 
‘‘(vi) coordinating post-fall treatment and rehabilita-
tion. 
‘‘(3) Award 1 or more grants, contracts, or cooperative 
agreements to qualified organizations, institutions, or consortia 
of qualified organizations and institutions, specializing, or dem-
onstrating expertise, in falls or fall prevention, to conduct 
evaluations of the effectiveness of the demonstration projects 
described in this subsection. 
‘‘(d) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants, contracts, or cooperative 
agreements under this section, the Secretary may give priority 
to entities that explore the use of cost-sharing with respect to 
activities funded under the grant, contract, or agreement to ensure 
the institutional commitment of the recipients of such assistance 
to the projects funded under the grant, contract, or agreement. 
Such non-Federal cost sharing contributions may be provided 
directly or through donations from public or private entities and 
may be in cash or in-kind, fairly evaluated, including plant, equip-
ment, or services. 
‘‘(e) STUDY OF EFFECTS OF FALLS ON HEALTH CARE COSTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may conduct a review 
of the effects of falls on health care costs, the potential for 
reducing falls, and the most effective strategies for reducing 
health care costs associated with falls. 
‘‘(2) REPORT.—If the Secretary conducts the review under 
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall, not later than 36 months 
after the date of enactment of the Safety of Seniors Act of 
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122 STAT. 700 
PUBLIC LAW 110–202—APR. 23, 2008 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—S. 845 (H.R. 3701): 
HOUSE REPORTS: No. 110–569 accompanying H.R. 3701 (Comm. on Energy and 
Commerce). 
SENATE REPORTS: No. 110–110 (Comm. on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen-
sions). 
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD: 
Vol. 153 (2007): Aug. 1, considered and passed Senate. 
Vol. 154 (2008): Apr. 8, considered and passed House. 
2007, submit to Congress a report describing the findings of 
the Secretary in conducting such review.’’. 
Approved April 23, 2008. 
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