The Trump Administration is heavily promoting what it calls its “Blueprint to Lower Drug Prices and Reduce Out-of-Pocket Costs.” But will the plan reduce out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries? The answer is: Not by much, at least not very soon. And, in some cases, it could even make drugs more costly. The first problem is that the paper really isn’t [...]
A doctor diagnoses your mother with heart disease. She can no longer drive and you know she needs help with transportation to her medical appointments. You ask for advice---and get a blank stare. Or you are dismissed. A growing body evidence shows that social supports may improve the overall well-being of people with medical conditions, especially chronic illness (here and [...]
When we think about family caregivers, we usually picture spouses or 50-something adult children. But, it turns out, about one-third of Americans have helped care for an older loved one by age 40. In some respects, those millennials resemble older caregivers: They are as likely to underestimate the need for long-term supports and services in old age and they misunderstand [...]
The Trump Administration’s increasingly tough crackdown on immigrants threatens to worsen an already severe shortage of aides who care for frail older adults and younger people with disabilities. The shortage of direct care workers will affect those living at home as well as those receiving residential care. The problem already is squeezing nursing homes and assisted living facilities, as well [...]
It is easy—and dangerous—to create stereotypes of older adults. Just when you think you have a picture in your head of what a senior is, you realize how very different they are. To borrow a phrase: You’ve seen one older adult and, you’ve seen one older adult. The 50 million Americans over 65 are more economically and racially diverse than [...]
It is hard to be an adult child caring for an aging parent. But it is also hard to be an aging parent being cared for by an adult child. One solution: Think of this relationship as a partnership, not as one family member providing a service to another. Indeed, the phrase “care partners” is catching on in some corners [...]
While many Americans spend their through assets in old age, a surprising number have more savings two decades after retiring than they do when they leave their jobs. The phenomenon is yet another chapter in the story of old age in the US-- which might be titled A Tale Of Two Retirements. A new study by Sudipto Benerjee of the [...]
The House is scheduled to vote tomorrow on a constitutional amendment to require the federal government to balance its budget every year. Lawmakers would be more honest if they just called it a Constitutional Amendment To Cut Benefits For Old People. Because that’s who’d likely bear the brunt of the spending cuts needed to comply with such a balanced budget [...]
Most seniors want to age at home rather than move to a senior living facility. But this choice brings many challenges, including the risks of social isolation, limited access to medical care and supportive services, and the potential for falls or other injuries that come from living in a home that is unsafe for a frail older adult. But there [...]
The huge 2018 budget bill Congress passed last week includes significant new money for dementia research and modest additional funding for many programs aimed at assisting frail older adults. The final $1.3 trillion bill was a dramatic about-face for President Trump and House Republicans, whose own budget plans would have slashed or even eliminated funding for many seniors’ programs. The [...]