Medicaid News
States Making Drastic Cuts in Medicaid Coverage;
Could Leave Indigent Elderly with No Options
State actions may force faster action on national
health care system
Jan. 5, 2009 – The health care crisis in America
may reach a boiling point faster than expected as state governments –
struggling to stay out of the red in this imploding economy – are
rapidly cutting the coverage they provide in Medicaid. California’s Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to stop paying for dental, psychological,
optometry and other services that would leave many indigent elderly with
no options for care.
Read more...
Alzheimer's, Dementia & Mental Health
Mental Deficits Appear Early in Diabetes Patients;
Last Into Old Age
Confirms previous reports that diabetes impairs
mental process
Jan 5, 2009 - Adults with diabetes experience a
slowdown in several types of mental processing, which appears early in
the disease and persists into old age, according to new research. Given
the sharp rise in new cases of diabetes, this finding means that more
adults may soon be living with mild but lasting deficits in their
thought processes.
Read more...
Senior Citizen Alerts
Free Generic Antibiotic Prescription Program
Announced by Food Chain
Giant Food pharmacies will continue the program
through March 21
Jan. 2, 2009 – More good news for senior citizens
burdened with cost of prescription drugs – a supermarket chain, Giant
Food, has announced a program of free generics for prescribed
antibiotics. It covers 36 generic antibiotics in nine basic categories.
The program began today, January 2, and runs through March 21 at all
Giant pharmacies.
Read more...
Features for Senior Citizens
Few Senior Citizens are Video Gamers but They are
Most Active of all Adult Gamers
Seniors prefer playing on computer rather than game
console
Jan. 2, 2009 – More than half of American adults
age 18 and older (53%) play video games and, surprisingly, 23% of those
65 and older play these games, according to a recent survey by the Pew
Research Center. It also found 97% of teens play video games.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Heart Attacks Appear to Decline Rapidly After
Smoke-Free Policy Enacted in Colorado City
Eight other studies show making indoor workplaces and
public places smoke-free results in sizable, rapid reductions in
hospital admissions for heart attack
Dec.
31, 2008 - Heart attack hospitalizations in the city of Pueblo, Colorado
fell sharply by more than 40 percent after the implementation of a
municipal law making workplaces and public places smoke-free, and this
decrease was sustained over a three-year period, according to a report
in this week′s
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Read more...
Senior Citizen Alerts
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
Grape Seed Extract Causes Leukemia Cells to Commit Suicide in Laboratory
Test
Possible implications for prevention or treatment of
hematological malignancies, other cancers
Dec.
31, 2008 - An extract from grape seeds forces laboratory leukemia cells
to commit cell suicide, according to researchers from the University of
Kentucky. They found that within 24 hours, 76 percent of leukemia cells
had died after being exposed to the extract.
Read more...
Senior Citizen Opinions & Analysis
A Retiree’s Lament: Stop The World I Want To Get Off!
Editor’s Note: Ever wonder why people often refer to
senior citizens as “cranky old men.” Read this column by our occasional
contributor, who is a retired senior.
By
Bill Kalmar, Retiree
Dec.
31, 2008 - Well, it’s that time of the year again. The usual
number of prognosticators, soothsayers and mind readers are emerging
from their cocoons to tantalize us with those irritating lists, which
attempt to capture what was best in the past year and what we can expect
in 2009. While reading these lists I sometimes feel that I am living in
a parallel universe! Read
more...
Exercise & Fitness for Senior Citizens
Gardening Growing Among Senior Citizens as Solution
to Need for Extensive Exercise
Thirty minutes of daily exercise comes with ease in
the garden
Dec.
30, 2008 – Gardening is an excellent way for senior citizens to meet the
exercise goals for older Americans set by the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention and the American College of Sports Medicine – at
least when the weather is warm. Many seniors find it a good way to keep
their minds busy while benefiting from hours of vigorous activity.
Read more...
Medicare News
Window Shuts on December 31 for Making Changes in
Medicare Coverage
New window opens January 1 for changes in Medicare
Advantage plans
Dec. 29, 2008 – Attention last minute shoppers, the
window for making changes to your Medicare prescription drug and health
care coverage is about to slam shut. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services closes this opportunity at the end of the day on December 31.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
One Hour Additional Sleep Lowers Calcification in
Coronary Arteries
New study looked at people under 50 but results will
interest senior citizens
Dec. 29, 2008 – Although a new study involved only
adults under 50 years of age, its finding that adding one more hour of
sleep per night significantly lowers the risk of coronary artery
calcification, which is thought to be a predictor of future heart
disease, according to a study in the December 24/31 issue of the Journal
of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Drug
Interaction Risk Increases as Medication Use by Senior Citizens Grows
Older adults are commonly using prescription and
over-the-counter medications together
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Seniors
Using More Medications - video |
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Dec. 29, 2008 – It has long been well established
that senior citizens are the leading pill poppers in the U.S. A new
study, however, finds the dangers for adverse drug reactions is
increasing as the use of prescription and over-the-counter medications,
along with dietary supplements, is increasing rapidly among the oldest
age groups.
Read more...
Senior Citizen Sports
Founder of Women’s Football Now Starting Wii Bowling
Money Site for Senior Citizens
Many senior centers around U.S. now sponsoring Wii
bowling tournaments
Dec.
22, 2008 – The push to get senior citizens to keep their minds and
bodies active has stirred a growing interest in electronic games. Now,
Catherine Masters wants to take it a step further by promoting a prize
money circuit for these older citizens who have taken up bowling with a
Wii video game. Read
more...
Medicare News
Quality Rating Stars are Posted on Nursing Home
Compare Website by CMS
Some nursing homes may not like their ratings but
site gets support of aging committee chair
Dec.
22, 2008 - For the first time in history, the Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released quality ratings for each
of the nation’s 15,800 nursing homes that participate in Medicare or
Medicaid. Although some nursing homes were unhappy with their ratings,
Sen. Herb Kohl, chair of the Senate’s committee on aging, gave it a
thumbs up and said he believes it will motivate the nursing homes to
provide the best possible care.
Read
more...
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IRS, Treasury Keep Rule Requiring
Retirees to Withdraw Their Savings
By Nancy Trejos,
Washington Post Staff Writer
The Treasury
Department and Internal Revenue Service decided not to change a
rule that requires seniors to withdraw money from their
individual retirement accounts and 401(k) plans by the end of
the year.
Retirees older than
70 1/2 have to take a required minimum distribution by Dec. 31
of each year or pay 50 percent of that minimum in taxes.
>>
Read the Dec. 19 story at the Washington Post |
Senior Citizen Alerts
Alzheimer's, Dementia & Mental Health
Two Cardiovascular Proteins Pose a Double Whammy in
Alzheimer's Disease
Fuel AD by reducing blood flow to brain, slowing
rate of amyloid beta removal
Dec. 22, 2008 - Scientists were surprised at their
discovery that puts two proteins known for their role in the
cardiovascular system front and center in the development of Alzheimer's
disease. The two proteins which work in tandem in the brain's blood
vessels present a double whammy in AD. Not only do the proteins lessen
blood flow in the brain, but they also reduce the rate at which the
brain is able to remove amyloid beta, the protein that builds up in
toxic quantities in the brains of patients with the disease.
Read
more...
Senior Citizen Longevity & Statistics
More Than Half U.S. Senior Citizens have a
Disability; Over 70 Percent of Those over 80
54.4 Million Americans live with a disability says
new report by Census Bureau
Dec. 18, 2008 - About one in five U.S. residents - 19 percent -
reported some level of disability in 2005, according to a U.S. Census
Bureau report released today. But, more than one out of three of all the
disabled in the U.S. are senior citizens, age 65 or older.
Read more...
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