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As the number of older adults increases, it is important to understand how attitudes toward aging influence society, the aging process, and the counseling profession. Ageism--defined as social stigma associated with old age or older people--has deleterious effects on older adults' physical health, psychological well-being, and self-perception. In spite of research indicating that the pervasiveness of ageism is growing, there are few studies, whether conceptual or empirical, related to the impact of ageism within the practice of counseling. This article includes an overview of existing literature on the prevalence and impact of ageism, systemic and practitioner-level consequences of ageism, and specific implications for the counseling profession. Discussion of how members of the counseling profession can resist ageism within the contexts of counselor education, gerontological counseling, advocacy, and future research will be addressed.

The authors analyzed data from 5,528 American Counseling Association members to examine advocacy beliefs and behavior regarding Medicare reimbursement and advocacy for counselors. Nearly half (49.3%) of the respondents had participated in one or more forms of Medicare reimbursement advocacy. Advocacy participation differed significantly by professional status.

This study examines counseling professionals' knowledge concerning the Medicare program and related advocacy efforts. American Counseling Association members (N = 5,097) answered a series of true-false questions that were intended to measure proficiency in two areas: Medicare policy and the counseling profession's advocacy for provider eligibility. Statistical analyses indicated that members have a wide range of Medicare knowledge. A significant difference in advocacy history knowledge was found when comparing counselor educators, practicing counselors, doctoral students, and master's students. However, no differences in policy knowledge were present among these groups. Implications for the counseling profession and counselor training are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To better understand the impact of the Medicare mental health coverage gap, the authors analyzed survey data provided by 1,859 members of the American Counseling Association using a conventional qualitative content analysis. One overarching theme, direct impact of Medicare policy on the counseling profession, is presented, along with 3 thematic categories: emotional impact on providers, economic toll on providers, and negative influence on profession's credibility. Implications for the counseling profession are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study illuminates the impact of existing Medicare mental health provider policy on individuals seeking counseling services. The authors applied qualitative content analysis to data provided by members of the American Counseling Association. Two superordinate themes, current Medicare policy encumbers the Medicare-insured and creates a unique hardship on specific client populations are presented in depth in this article, in addition to several emergent themes. The results suggest that current Medicare policy has far-reaching undesirable consequences for the Medicare-insured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This interpretative phenomenological analysis explored licensed professional counselors' experiences of turning away Medicare beneficiaries because of the current Medicare mental health policy. Researchers used semi-structured interviews to explore the client-level barriers created by federal legislation that determines professional counselors as Medicare-ineligible providers. An in-depth presentation of one superordinate theme, ineffectual policy, along with the emergent themes confounding regulations, programmatic inconsistencies, and impediment to care, illustrates the proximal barriers Medicare beneficiaries experience when actively seeking out licensed professional counselors for mental health care. Licensed professional counselors' experiences indicate that current Medicare provider regulations interfere with mental health care accessibility and availability for Medicare-insured populations. Implications for advocacy are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]