Texas Takes on Falls Coalition
A statewide coalition working to keep older Texans safe, active, and independent.
Statewide coalition · est. 2007
Preventing falls. Protecting independence. Connecting Texas.
The Texas Takes on Falls Coalition (TToF) is a statewide network of organizations and individuals working together to prevent falls and help older Texans remain safe, independent, and connected to the communities they call home.
ROOTED 2026: A Texas Summit on Falls Prevention, Caregiving & Living Well at Home
A full-day statewide summit for coalition partners, healthcare professionals, caregivers, and older adults, exploring falls prevention, caregiving, and aging in place through "Mary's Story" — one story followed through prevention, emergency response, recovery, and the return home. Featuring a keynote from Carol Zernial (WellMed Charitable Foundation) and panels moderated by Dr. Matthew Smith (Indiana University) and Dr. Marcia Ory (Texas A&M University). Early-bird pricing ends August 31, 2026.
A shared goal, built over two decades
For more than 19 years, the Coalition has brought together partners from healthcare, aging services, public health, emergency response, academia, community-based organizations, local government, and other sectors around a shared goal: reducing falls and their impact on older adults, families, and communities across Texas.
Co-led by Texas Healthy at Home and WellMed Charitable Foundation, TToF connects a network of 60+ member organizations to strengthen collaboration, expand access to evidence-based falls prevention programs and training, share resources and promising practices, elevate local efforts, and build greater awareness that falls are not an inevitable part of aging.
Because preventing a fall is about much more than preventing an injury. It's about protecting the things that can be lost after one: independence, confidence, mobility, connection, and the ability to remain at home.
Partners across Texas work together to
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Expand access to evidence-based falls prevention programs and training — search our Program Finder to find classes and resources near you.Open Program Finder →
- Connect organizations and professionals working across healthcare and community settings
- Share tools, resources, data, and promising practices
- Strengthen local and regional falls prevention efforts
- Promote Falls Prevention Awareness Week activities across Texas
- Elevate the voices and experiences of older adults and family caregivers
- Increase public awareness that many falls can be prevented
- Build stronger connections between clinical care, community services, and the places people call home
Falls are not an inevitable part of aging.
Every Texan should have the opportunity to grow older with safety, dignity, independence, and connection, and no single organization or profession can make that possible alone. That's why Texas Takes on Falls brings people together.
Our history
The coalition has evolved through several eras of leadership, each building on the last while sharpening its focus on falls prevention.
Led by the Texas Association of Area Agencies on Aging (T4A). With support from the Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS) and later Humana as a statewide sponsor, the coalition trained dozens of leaders and coaches and brought A Matter of Balance to more than 1,100 older Texans. In 2008, the Governor of Texas signed the state's first proclamation recognizing Falls Prevention Awareness Day.
Leadership shifted to the Area Agency on Aging of Tarrant County, and the coalition broadened its focus beyond falls to evidence-based programs more generally.
Membership grew to more than 100 organizations under Dr. Marcia Ory's steering committee. The coalition coordinated Falls Prevention Awareness Week, local events, and a quarterly newsletter. In 2017, Dr. Matthew Smith led its transformation into the Active for Life Coalition, broadening its focus to include chronic disease alongside falls prevention.
Texas Healthy at Home and WellMed Charitable Foundation became co-leads, and the coalition returned its focus to falls prevention under its current name. Since then, the Coalition has developed strategic plans to guide its work, with the 2025–2026 plan now underway.
Create systemic, lasting change that reduces falls in communities across Texas
2025–2026 strategic priorities
Promote awareness of the human and financial impact of falls, in the home and in healthcare, through a statewide campaign built on fresh graphics, bold communication, and clear statistics.
Promote access to and use of local resources and services that reduce fall-related risk.
What we've achieved
Completed and approved the Coalition's 2022–2024 Strategic Plan, with workgroups now formed to carry out its goals and objectives.
Grown to 60+ member organizations spanning academic institutions, first responders, healthcare entities, community-based organizations, community volunteers, and government agencies.
Awarded a grant from the National Council on Aging, backed by the Administration for Community Living, to strengthen the Coalition's statewide work from April 2025 through October 2026.
Across three ACL-funded grant periods from 2015–2023, enrolled 7,500+ older Texans in evidence-based falls prevention programs across 25+ Texas counties, delivered five evidence-based programs, and contributed to peer-reviewed research (Ory et al., 2017; Smith & Ory, 2023).
Piloted a Bingocize® evaluation project with support from Baylor Scott & White Health Plan (2023–2024), reaching 49 participants across four rural West Texas counties, with strong reported gains in comfort discussing fall risk, willingness to raise activity levels, and life satisfaction, and no injury-causing falls reported after the program.
Partnered with NCOA on a 2024 Falls Prevention Awareness Week pilot, the DFW Falls Prevention Day of Action, reaching an estimated 104,501 people and completing more than 2,850 Falls Free CheckUps.
Spotlighted by the National Council on Aging in "Get Ready for FPAW 2025: Spotlight Texas!", a video highlighting the Coalition's Falls Prevention Awareness Week work.
Recognized with a Governor's Proclamation for Falls Prevention Awareness Week in both 2024 and 2025.
Shared Texas's approach at national gatherings, including a presentation to the King County Falls Prevention Coalition in Seattle and a feature in USAging's national newsletter.
Find a program, or explore what we offer
Program Finder
Look up evidence-based falls prevention classes, providers, and local resources across Texas.
Beyond the Program Finder, here are the evidence-based programs delivered through our member organizations. Select a program to learn more from the National Council on Aging.
A small-group workshop proven to reduce falls by building strength, balance, and confidence in older adults — one of the most widely used evidence-based falls prevention programs nationwide.
More tools from NCOA
The tools below are adapted from, and cited to, the National Council on Aging's falls prevention resource page.
Outcomes we're working toward
Stronger partnerships with aging networks, healthcare professionals, and community-based organizations to improve coordination, expand program reach, and increase access to evidence-based programs.
Better identification and intervention for high-risk individuals through predictive analytics and real-time, targeted outreach.
A successful Falls Prevention Summit that fosters collaboration, policy discussions, and long-term strategic planning.
Sustainable coalition growth and impact through innovative engagement strategies, expanded partnerships, and ongoing technological advancement.
