Whitman briefed National Press Foundation fellows in September 2022: Age Discrimination is Pervasive, Says AARP Chief Public Policy Officer and October 2023: Bracing for Impact: The Long-Term Care Crisis Unpacked.

Debra Whitman, PhD, is an economist and expert on aging issues. She has extensive experience in national policymaking and domestic and international research. She is a strategic thinker whose life’s work has been devoted to solving problems and improving the systems that impact us all.

As Chief Public Policy Officer for AARP, Whitman leads a team of 150 experts in all aspects of policy development, analysis, research and global thought leadership. She and her teams produce policy and research insights and solutions that help communities, lawmakers and the private sector improve our lives as we age.

Whitman connects with a range of national and international stakeholders through events and speaking engagements with institutions such as Forbes, the Aspen Institute, the United Nations, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Economic Forum. She has appeared in or been quoted by media outlets, including The New York Times, Bloomberg, USA Today, NBC Nightly News, CBS News, The Huffington Post, The Washington Post and Politico.

As staff director for the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, Whitman worked across the aisle to increase retirement security, lower the cost of health care, protect vulnerable seniors, safeguard consumers, make the pharmaceutical industry more transparent and improve our nation’s long-term care system. Before that, she worked for the Congressional Research Service as a specialist in the economics of aging. She provided members of Congress and their staff with research and advice and authored analytical reports on the economic impacts of policies affecting older Americans.

From 2001 to 2003, Whitman served as a Brookings LEGIS Fellow to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions. Earlier in her career, she conducted research on savings and retirement for the Social Security Administration. Whitman is a writer and public speaker, a mom and an advocate for those whose voices need to be heard.