Aging
Baby Boomers Set Another Trend: More Golden Years In Poorer Health
After the last of the baby boomers become fully eligible for Medicare, the federal health program can expect significantly higher costs in 2030 both because of the high number of beneficiaries and because many are expected to be significantly less healthy than previous generations. The typical Medicare beneficiary who is 65 or older then will […]
LA Chapter Splitting From National Alzheimer’s Association
The Los Angeles-area chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association is splitting from the national organization, the latest in a string of departures that could impact the national group’s bottom line. The chapter, which covers Los Angeles, Riverside and San Bernardino counties, announced its decision Thursday to separate and form its own organization. Chapters in San Diego […]
Hospitals Step Up To Help Seniors Avoid Falls
Daphne Brown, 65, was putting away the dishes in her Washington kitchen when she fell to the floor. Jane Bulla, 82, fell at home in Laurel, Maryland, but managed to call for help with the cellphone in her pocket. Susan Le, 63, who has trouble walking due to arthritis, hurt her leg when she tripped […]
Buying Supplemental Insurance Can Be Hard For Younger Medicare Beneficiaries
Danny Thompson’s kidneys have failed and he needs a transplant but in some ways, he’s lucky: Both of his sons want to give him one of theirs, and his Medicare coverage will take care of most of his expenses. Yet the 53-year-old Californian is facing another daunting obstacle: He doesn’t have the money for his […]
Some Dialysis Patients Give Medicare Failing Grade On Ambulance Trial
Charles Prozzillo’s life changed for the worse when Medicare stopped paying for his ambulance rides to dialysis a year ago. The 72-year-old Pennsylvania man, who had been a hairdresser with his own salon and volunteer firefighter in his younger days, was being treated for late-stage kidney failure. Three times a week for five years he […]
A 401(k) Withdrawal Can Lead To Trouble For Health Plan Subsidies
This week I answered a grab bag of questions from readers about premium tax credit repayments for marketplace plans, out-of-network emergency care and nursing home bills. While doing my taxes I discovered that I made more money in 2015 than I anticipated. I was forced to take money out of my 401(k) to make ends […]
The Agonizing Limbo Of Abandoned Nursing Home Residents
A bad bout of pneumonia sent Bruce Anderson to Sutter Medical Center in Sacramento last May. As soon as he recovered, hospital staff tried to return him to the nursing home where he had been living for four years. But the home refused to readmit him, even after being ordered to do so by the […]
UCLA Freshmen Learn About Growing Old
April Pearce is in the middle of her freshman year at UCLA, settling into life away from home for the first time. But instead of thinking about dorm food or exams, the 19-year-old is focused on something a little more abstract: old age. That’s because of a unique course Pearce is taking called Frontiers in […]
Report Details Senior Health Care That Misses The Mark
Quality over quantity. As people get older, their health care goals may shift away from living as long as possible to maintaining a good quality of life. In key areas, however, the medical treatment older people receive often doesn’t reflect this change, according to a new study. The wide-ranging report from the Dartmouth Atlas Project uses Medicare […]
Housing Project Takes On Seniors’ Health
Hui-Zhen Li doesn’t speak English, but here she can speak freely. She’s standing amid more than 150 Chinese seniors, all perched on metal folding chairs or slouching in wheelchairs, packed wall to wall in the main lobby of the Hotel Oakland. Li is 89 years old, she knows her own mind, and she’s not afraid […]