Losing more than 100,000 Americans in three months to a virus that wasn’t even known when 2020 began seems unfathomable. The New York Times illustrated the gravity of the pandemic with its arresting front page of the names of roughly 1% of those who di… Continue reading
As modern living as we know it is drastically changing during this pandemic, so is assisted living. Already, many of us are facing difficult decisions about whether someone we know should stay in an assisted living facility or be taken out due to the c… Continue reading
(This article appeared previously in Kaiser Health News.) Craig Holly was determined to fight when the home health agency caring for his wife decided to cut off services Jan. 18. The reason he was given by an agency nurse? His wife was disabled but sta… Continue reading
The Mall of America on the outskirts of the Twin Cities has more than 520 stores and restaurants, plus an indoor theme park. Last November, it added something else: the M Health Fairview Walk-In Clinic with five medical exam rooms, lab space for tests,… Continue reading
Here are two eye-popping facts: Someone turning 65 will have a nearly 70% chance of needing long-term care in the future. And the annual cost of a private room in a nursing home (national median) is over $100,000 a year, according to the recent Genwort… Continue reading
In her piercing new book Unbound: How Inequality Constricts Our Economy and What We Can Do About It, economist Heather Boushey writes: “The trend toward greater economic inequality continues its seemingly inexorable march.” Four recent studies — includ… Continue reading
With the next Democratic presidential candidates’ debate on television tonight (CNN at 8 p.m. ET/ 7 pm CT), it’s worth noting something missing from the earlier debates — questions and answers about aging in America. (There have been more than enough q… Continue reading
When he ran for governor of California in 2018, Democrat Gavin Newsom pledged that if he won, he’d create a Master Plan for Aging for the state and its residents. One reason: the Golden State’s 65+ population is projected to grow almost 90% by 2030, to… Continue reading
In the 1970s, many teenage boomers practically lived at the mall, trying on clothes at The Gap, eating pretzels at Hot Sam’s and buying albums at Tower Records. Little did they know that by 2029, they might literally be living at the mall. Converting s… Continue reading
It’s an issue we can’t ignore: The fastest-growing age group in our population needs our help, and we’re failing them miserably. For the first time in the history of the developed world, there are more of us over age 60 than under age 5. Women who reac… Continue reading