New research from PHI, the nation’s authority on the direct-care workforce, sheds light on this critical segment of the U.S. workforce. Released in conjunction with Labor Day, which commemorates the contributions of the American worker, this new data illuminates the realities of direct-care workers. According to PHI, home care workers and nursing assistants in nursing homes fit a profile: the typical worker in these sectors is a woman, a person of color, and in her late 30s to mid-40s. Roughly a quarter of these workers are born outside of the United States and half lack formal education beyond high school….
September 11 is National Grandparents Day. Since 1978, the first Sunday after Labor Day has been designated as a day to pay tribute to our nation’s grandparents. Grandparents are our important connections to the past and they help to lay the groundwork for our futures. There is nothing that can compare to the cherished relationship that can exist between a grandparent and a grandchild. Not only do grandparents play an important role within their families, sometimes they may find themselves back in the role of parent raising children due to unfortunate events. For many grandparents, stepping into a parental role…
Many boomers approaching their retirement years are anxious about having enough income. But many are finding help by turning to the so-called “gig economy” – driving for Uber, renting out extra rooms in their homes. Twenty-four percent of all Uber drivers are over age 50, and 3 percent report being formerly retired. Bloomberg reports that people age 60-plus are the fastest-growing and best-reviewed age group on Airbnb. DogVacay, which connects pet sitters with owners, reports that people over the age of 50 constitute 25 percent of sitters. The JPMorgan Chase Institute reports that seniors earn about 25 percent of their…
An Indonesian man who claims to be the longest living human in recorded history has described how he “just wants to die”. Mbah Gotho, from Sragen in central Java, was born on December 31, 1870, according to the date of birth on his identity card. Now officials at the local record office say they have finally been able to confirm that remarkable date as genuine. If independently confirmed, the findings would make Mr. Gotho a staggering 145 years old – and the longest lived human in recorded history. But despite his incredible longevity, Mr. Gotho says he has little wish…
The Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving in Americus, Georgia is hosting its 29th Annual National Summit & Training Institute on Friday, October 21. Today’s caregiver must traverse many pathways to seek solutions and proven effective supports to thrive in today’s caregiving journey. This one day conference will explore caregiver needs who are caring for others with diverse chronic illnesses and disability across the lifespan. An audience of family and professional caregivers, service providers, and volunteers will hear from experts on topics that are on every caregiver’s mind: Communicating Assertively and Respectfully; Dealing Effectively with Depression and Grief; Preventing Fraud and…
Considering that Americans 65 and older are the demographic group most likely to vote, it is astounding how little the major parties’ presidential candidates have talked about two issues that loom so large in older adults’ lives: caregiving and long-term care. About 34 million Americans provided unpaid care to an adult 50 or older in 2014, according to a 2015 report by the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP. Half of those so-called “informal” caregivers were caring for a parent or parent-in-law. And the impact of that caregiving on their pocketbooks is profound. About one in five said caregiving created…
More than three dozen just-released audits reveal how some private Medicare plans overcharged the government for the majority of elderly patients they treated, often by overstating the severity of certain medical conditions, such as diabetes and depression. The Center for Public Integrity recently obtained, through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, the federal audits of 37 Medicare Advantage programs. These audits have never before been made public, and though they reveal overpayments from 2007 — money that has since been paid back — many plans are still appealing the findings. Medicare Advantage is a privately run alternative to standard Medicare;…
Millions of workers struggle to save for retirement in part because it isn’t easy enough to open an account or to have the money automatically deducted from their paychecks. But they could soon find themselves with more options. Last week, the Labor Department unveiled a rule that should make it easier for states to launch their own retirement plans for private-sector workers who don’t already have access to savings accounts through their jobs. The rules, which were requested last year by President Obama, provide a clearer road map for states who want to provide such plans but needed more federal…
A California judge last week refused to suspend a new state law allowing physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill patients, citing the need to protect them from pain, but he allowed a legal challenge to proceed. The mixed ruling portends a continued debate over the highly contested law in the first months of its implementation. Source/more: Reuters David Wingate is an elder law attorney at the Elder Law Office of David Wingate, LLC. The elder law office services clients with powers of attorneys, living wills, Wills, Trusts, Medicaid and asset protection. The Elder Law office has locations in Frederick and…
Are there any ways of preventing or delaying the development of Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of age-associated dementia? While several previously published studies have suggested a protective effect for cognitive activities such as reading, playing games or attending cultural events, questions have been raised about whether these studies reveal a real cause-and-effect relationship or if the associations could result from unmeasured factors. To address this question, a Boston-based research team conducted a formal bias analysis and concluded that, while potentially confounding factors might have affected previous studies’ results, it is doubtful that such factors totally account for observed associations…
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