Caroline Cadirao appointed as director of the state’s Executive Office on Aging

Gov. David Ige has appointed Caroline Cadirao as the director of the State of Hawai‘i Executive Office on Aging. With nearly 20 years of program management experience with the Executive Office on Aging, Cadirao now leads the agency in charge of coordinating a statewide system of elder care and caregiver support services in Hawai‘i.

 

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Cadirao brings to the position nearly 30 years of experience in the field of aging advocacy and programming. Most recently, Cadirao served as a program specialist in the Executive Office on Aging. In that role, she was responsible for the oversight of several programs and, most notably, she led the implementation of the Kupuna Caregivers Program, the first program of its kind in the nation that provides a small stipend to ease the financial burden on working Hawai‘i caregivers of a senior relative and to prevent or postpone costly institutional care.

In her new position, Cadirao oversees integral programs, such as Senior Medicare Patrol Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i State Health Insurance Assistance Program, Healthy Aging Partnership, and
the Family Caregiver Support Program.

“Caroline’s extensive experience and commitment to implementing and improving programs for Hawai‘i’s kūpuna and their caregivers are invaluable,” said Cathy Ross, deputy director, Hawai‘i Department of Health. “We are confident she will be able to build a strong, comprehensive system of support for Hawai‘i’s fast-growing senior population.”

Prior to joining the Executive Office on Aging in 2000, Cadirao worked as a program director for Helping Hands Hawai‘i and was also a program coordinator for Catholic Charities Hawai‘i. Cadirao holds a bachelor’s degree from University of Hawai‘i Mānoa in psychology, and is a graduate of Saint Francis School.

The Executive Office on Aging is dedicated to serving Hawai‘i’s older adults, or kūpuna, as authorized by federal and state laws. The federal Older Americans Act establishes an Aging Network and provides federal funds, which are administered by the Executive Office on Aging for elderly support services, nutrition services, preventive health services, elder rights protection, and family caregiver support services. To learn about the Executive Office on  Aging’s efforts to develop comprehensive and coordinated systems to serve older adults and family caregivers in Hawai‘i, go to https://health.hawaii.gov/eoa/.

This press release was provided by the Hawaii Department of Health.