“Seniors on Medicare Advantage less likely to have issues paying medical bills: CDC study,” by Robert King, Fierce Healthcare   Quote: “Seniors on traditional Medicare were more likely to be a part of a family that has problems paying medical bills compared to beneficiaries on Medicare Advantage (MA), a new study found. But beneficiaries on MA were also more likely to struggle with medical bills compared to those on private insurance coverage. The study, (PDF) released Wednesday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found that overall the percentage of people in families that had a problem paying a
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“Pennsylvania Puts LTCI Issuer in Rehabilitation,” by Allison Bell, ThinkAdvisor   Quote: “Regulators in Pennsylvania have put a midsize long-term care insurance (LTCI) issuer, Senior Health Insurance Company of Pennsylvania (SHIP), in rehabilitation. … The SHIP rehabilitation could be somewhat smaller than the Penn Treaty rehabilitation process.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Here we go again; Conseco this time.    
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“How to Deal With an Aging Advisor Force and Aging Clients,” by Bernice Napach, ThinkAdvisor   Quote: “More than one-third of financial advisors, or 111,500-plus, will be retiring this decade, along with many of their clients, creating a number of dramatic challenges for the industry. Firms will be faced with retaining the assets of retiring advisors, which account for almost 40% of all advisor assets, managing the shrinking or slower growing assets of existing, aging clients, and attracting newer, younger advisors to help run the business and draw in the heirs of current clients. Nearly $70 trillion in assets is expected
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“The Challenges Facing Japan’s Long-Term Care Services” by Yuki Yasuhiro, Nippon.com   Quote: “Long-term care has a negative image in Japan as a strenuous job that pays comparatively little. Worker turnover is high and care facilities are chronically short-handed. In today’s rapidly aging society, what can be done to improve conditions?” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Sound familiar? Evidently the radical new Japanese government program for long-term care that we profiled 15 years ago has not solved all the country’s LTC challenges. Check out LTC Bullet:  How Japan Escapes “LTC Hell,” November 18, 2005.
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“How the Longevity Project Is Reimagining Our Longer Lives,” by Holly Lawrence, Next Avenue   Quote: “As life expectancies are growing and the 100-year-life is becoming more common, how can Americans, the U.S. government and employers best prepare for the challenges and opportunities of longevity? Meet the Longevity Project, the new initiative designed to come up with some answers. The Longevity Project, developed in collaboration with the Stanford Center on Longevity (its lead content creator), is generating research and engaging in public conversation on the many impacts of longer lives. It just released a poll of 2,200 adults, conducted by Morning
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“Flu more deadly for U.S. seniors than coronavirus, say doctors,” by Alicia Lasek, McKnight’s LTC News   Quote: “The coronavirus currently plaguing China and spreading global fears has been particularly deadly for elderly people with pre-existing health conditions. Yet it is not nearly as menacing as seasonal flu, physician specialists recently told Kaiser Health News. Influenza rarely gets the sort of attention that 2019 Novel Coronavirus is getting, even though it kills more Americans each year than any other virus, the doctors pointed out. Familiarity breeds indifference, one physician reminded the news outlet.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for
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“Living near major roads linked to risk of dementia, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and MS,” Science Daily   Quote: “Researchers from the University of British Columbia analyzed data for 678,000 adults in Metro Vancouver. They found that living less than 50 metres from a major road or less than 150 metres from a highway is associated with a higher risk of developing dementia, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and MS — likely due to increased exposure to air pollution.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Besides, the road noise will drive you nuts anyway.    
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“Burnout generation gap: Gen X healthcare workers fare worse than millennials, boomers,” by Hailey Mensik, HealthCareDive   Quote: “Physicians ages 40 to 54, or those belonging to Generation X, experience burnout at a higher rate than their older and younger coworkers, according to a new report from Medscape. Nearly 48% of Gen X physicians reported burnout, compared with 38% of millennials and 39% of baby boomers. Among all generations, bureaucratic tasks including charts and paperwork were cited most frequently as a factor for professional dissatisfaction and burnout, followed by long hours. … Half of all physicians surveyed said they would take a
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“39% of adults in their 70s view Social Security as ‘a lifeline’,” by Lois A. Bowers, McKnight’s Senior Living   Quote: “Thirty-nine percent of respondents to a new survey who were aged 70 to 79 said they plan to rely on Social Security in retirement ‘a lot, as a lifeline to keep me afloat,’ suggesting both challenges and opportunities ahead for senior living operators. An additional one-third (33%) in that age group who participated in TD Ameritrade’s ‘Road to Retirement Survey’ said they plan to rely on Social Security ‘some,’ and 27% said ‘a little, as a cushion when I need it.’
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“How to Survive as a Caregiver: Six Essential Tips,” by Dorothy Kelley, Today’s Caregiver   Quote: “Have you ever found yourself thrust into a job that you would never have applied for, and for which you didn’t have the background or training? For which you felt you were unsuited in so many ways?  And for which you are not allowed to quit or retire?  That scenario might be the stuff of most people’s nightmares, but for millions of Americans, it is the reality of life as a caregiver.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Anyone who
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