The world is aging so fast that most countries are not prepared to support their swelling numbers of elderly people, according to a global study issued by the United Nations and an elder rights group. The report ranks the social and economic well-being of elders in 91 countries, with Sweden coming out on top and Afghanistan at the bottom. It reflects what advocates for the old have been warning, with increasing urgency, for years: Nations are simply not working quickly enough to cope with a population graying faster than ever before. By the year 2050, for the first time in…
The Boston Globe reports that the average cost for a private long-term care insurance policy has jumped 80 percent in the last 5 years. Insurers say the increases are needed because many policies were priced too low initially. In addition, the industry projections relating to costs and interest rates were inadequate.
University of Utah electrical engineers have developed a network of wireless sensors that can detect a person falling. This monitoring technology could be linked to a service that would call emergency help for the elderly without requiring them to wear monitoring devices. For people age 65 and older, falling is a leading cause of injury and death. Most fall-detection devices monitor a person's posture or require a person to push a button to call for help. However, these devices must be worn at all times. A 2008 study showed 80 percent of elderly adults who owned call buttons didn't use…
September 12, 2013SERVICE DELIVERY VISION: A more responsive, integrated, person-centered, and fiscally sustainable LTSS delivery system that ensures people can access quality services in settings they choose.Rebalancing – A Balanced Array of LTSS:Recommendation: Promote services for persons with functional limitations in the least restrictive setting appropriate to their needs– building a system, including Medicaid, with options for people who would prefer to live in the community.Integration:Recommendation 1: Establish a single point of contact for LTSS on the care team.Recommendation 2: Align incentives to improve the integration of LTSS with health care services in a person- and family-centered approach.Recommendation 3: Use…
Great hospitals! Good public transportation! Booming economy! The best small city for seniors looking to age well is…Sioux Falls, South Dakota? Forget the palm trees and warm sea breezes, the health care facilities in this small western city “specialize in geriatric services, hospice, and rehabilitation, and the metro has recreation and an active lifestyle.” It’s enough, at least, to make Sioux Falls No. 1 of 259 small cities in a recent study by the Milken Institute, a non-partisan think tank. Looking for a more major metropolitan vibe? Set your gaze to Provo, Utah, where the pro-business environment, a focus on…
A new survey shows that communities are having mixed success in making accommodations for their aging populations. One-third of older Americans say their city or town is not preparing for the future needs of a growing senior population. Approximately 18 percent of seniors say that their community is not responsive to senior needs. Transportation and affordable housing are the two areas where seniors say their city should increase investments. Learn more.
Pew Research surveys found in 1990 that 12 percent of Americans had a “living will,” a figure that rose to just 29 percent by 2005. So on a nearly daily basis, the palliative care specialist Dr. Joshua Lakin said in an interview, “I’d see someone who’d had lung cancer for several years, who’d been in and out of the hospital, had seen 20 doctors, and still hadn’t thought about the future and his priorities. It kind of blindsided me.” So Dr. Lakin, who just completed a fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco, and some colleagues took an entirely…
Climate change is affecting a growing population of at-risk older Americans. Studies by EPA researchers and others find that seniors aged 65 and older are more vulnerable to hot temperatures and extreme weather events —effects which will become more frequent as the climate changes. In a recent paper, “Climate Change and Older Americans: State of the Science” (Environ Health Perspect 121:15–22. 2013), EPA researchers reviewed the current “state of the science” about the links between climate change and health effects impacting older Americans. The paper explores connections between what is expected to be an increase in the population of older…
Elderly Americans who live with people under age 18 have lower life evaluations than those who do not. They also experience worse emotional outcomes, including less happiness and enjoyment, and more stress, worry, and anger. In part, these negative outcomes come from selection into living with a child, especially selection on poor health, which is associated with worse outcomes irrespective of living conditions. Yet even with controls, the elderly who live with children do worse. This is in sharp contrast to younger adults who live with children, likely their own, whose life evaluation is no different in the presence of…
Animals make great companions for senior citizens, but elderly people who always drive with a pet in the car are far more likely to crash than those who never drive with a pet, researchers have found. The new study included 2,000 licensed drivers aged 70 and older. The nearly 700 participants who had pets were asked how often they drove with their pet in the car. Among those who always drove with their pets, the crash risk was twice as high as among those who never drove with their pet. Crash rates for those who sometimes or rarely drove with…
Frederick, MD 
301-663-9230
