Non-Medical Home Care

Photo by flossyflotsam.

When choosing to be a gerontologist, I imagined helping the Baby Boomers with their own aging process.

Boomers (born between 1964 and 1946) do not perceive themselves as older adults.

Because of the increases in life expectancy in developed countries, Boomers still know a lot of people who are decades older than they are.

Consequently, most Boomers--even the trailblazers who are now 67--see themselves as inhabiting the life stage of "extended midlife."

Many from the Boomer generation aren't ready to claim being older adults because they are still offering support for their own parents.

In 2010, MetLife reports that nearly 10 million people 50 plus care for an aging parent. Furthermore, their study states:

Part D Open Enrollment

Photo by StockMonkeys.com. 

Fall is just around the corner. That means that it's almost time for the annual open enrollment period for Medicare Part D, Prescription Plans.  Between October 15th and December 7th of each year, Medicare beneficiaries can compare plans. As a result, they can switch or continue with their current plan.

For more information on Open Enrollment dates and other the important events between September and January regarding Part D, see this brochure created by CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services).

Are you asking, "What is Plan D?" Here is a brief explanation. 

The above video defining Part D was produced by a private insurance company, United Healthcare. By linking to their video, I am not endorsing this insurance company or any other insurance company.  I just like their short, clear introduction to Part D. See a SHIP counselor  for free, unbiased Medicare counseling.  

From year to year, the insurance companies that administer Medicare Part D plans can change prices and policies. For example:

Women Help All to Get Old

Sharon Couto, Maye Musk and Sally Beatty Photo from Get Old

I have long suspected that women are primarily in charge of people's bodies. Whether they are gestating bodies, feeding bodies, healing bodies, cleaning up fluids flung loose from bodies, or assisting aging bodies--women are most often in positions of key management over such matters.  I know that in my house, I am the person most focused on effective body management.

Other family members, consumed with personal achievement or leisure activities, often put the health and function of their bodies on the back burner. So I ask them, "When was the last time you ate?" "Why are you coughing?"  "Are you getting tired?"  "Are those shoes too small for you now?"  "How did you get that bruise?" "Why don't we eat some leafy greens?"  

Yes, sometimes little girls, men and boys help with these body-focused duties as they occur in the domestic sphere. I love a man who will change a diaper or a teen who will clean up vomit or a child who will choose carrot sticks over cookies. I applaud them.

However, my trip to the Get Old* blogger summit this October confirmed my suspicions. No matter what our current age or social role, we women are clearly major stakeholders in the management of bodies.  And most every body wants to get old in a healthy way. 

The blogger summit also confirmed another notion: Everybody ages.

In attendance were 10 vibrant bloggers who address issues across the lifespan.  Although my list forces these bloggers into concern based on the "age" of their blogging topics, all demonstrated interest in connecting the generations through family life, education, storytelling (with words and images) and advocacy.

Older Americans 2012 Federal Report

Photo by Wolfgang.

Thanks to the rigors of my graduate program, I have been compelled to read materials that are outside my comfort zone as a retired English teacher.

Update: See a summary of the 2016 Report

I read the quantitative research of economists, policy analysts and actuaries--all of whom compile and evaluate statistics. Surprisingly, I've developed an interest in these materials.

While you might recoil at reading data-heavy documents, I invite you read at least some of this report generated by the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics.

 Older Americans 2012: Key Indicators of Well Being 

The report (just click the title of the report in the text above) is actually relatively accessible because the authors primarily use images coupled with bullet points of data.

Established in 1986, this forum brought together the resources of several federal agencies in order to better focus on the experiences and needs of our nation's older adults. Every two years since 2000, they have published this detailed, yet far-ranging report. 

This report contains data and analysis for 37 Indicators of Well Being are listed within on of these main areas:

• Population
• Economics
• Health Statistics
• Health Risks and Behaviors
• Health Care
• Special Features

If you only read one page of the report, read the page labeled "Highlights," which presents a handful of trends supported with statistics in the body of the report. For example, here is a highlight from the Economics section:

The Donut Hole Is Closing by 2020

Photo by Sun Brockie

Medicare Part D is a government-sponsored insurance program that subsidizes beneficiaries' prescriptions.  If you don't understand the basics, please take some time to view the Medicare Part D website.  

This program does not cover 100% of prescription costs. Beneficiaries are responsible for these expenses:

1. Monthly premium 
2. Deductible
3. Co-pays 
4. Full costs of over-the-counter drugs 
5. Full costs for drugs not covered in your plan's formulary. 
6. And if beneficiaries delay signing up for Part D, they have another cost: a permanent penalty for late enrollment, which is 1% of the premium for every month the beneficiary delays signing up for coverage when eligible. 

Of all these expenses, the co-pays give beneficiaries the most trouble. The bottom line: Medicare beneficiaries enrolled now may have to pay $4,700 out-of-pocket annually just in prescription costs, maybe a bit more if they reach catastrophic coverage.

More Seniors than Ever: Population Pyramids

Photo by Nestor_PS

Every society has a shape for how the various generations relate to each other.  

The shape of these charts might change from decade to decade due to an array of factors:

birth rates, disease, immigration, famine, war, public sanitation, availability of health care, availability of reliable birth control, etc.

Demographers often call these multigenerational charts "population pyramids."  

The shape of the United State's population pyramid is moving to look more less like a pyramid and more like a rocket because of a number of factors. 

Briefly stated, Americans are having fewer children, leading to smaller cohorts in recent generations. Today's older Americans are living longer than their grandparents, increasing the average life expectancy.  

Encore Careers: Live to Work Instead of Work to Live

Photo by Tim Cummings

Now that many people are living 20 or even 30 years beyond traditional retirement age, older workers are exploring other options besides decades of leisure.   

You may not be familiar with the term Encore Career, but you probably have some experience with it. 

Did you or your children have a school teacher who was retired military?  That is an example of an encore career: someone who retires from their first career and picks up a second one that is more focused on serving the broader community. 


There are a variety of reasons why older adults postpone retirement.  While some research suggests that only a portion of older adults have the luxury to “follow their bliss” in their career goals, many are finding a way to set aside goals of money, power and fame in favor of more idealistic aims. 

Marc Freedman, author of Encore: Finding Work that Matters in the Second Half of Life, suggests these fields for older adults seeking purpose and passion over a paycheck: 

• Health Care
• Education
• The Aging Field
• Government
• The Non-profit Sector 

Glasses, Hearing Aids, and Dentures Not Covered by Medicare

Photo by Kent Landerholm

While Medicare does provide many benefits to older adults, there are several tests, items and services that are not covered by Medicare. This link leads to a webpage that provides a searchable list so that you can determine what Medicare does and does not cover.

Notably, Medicare does not cover the cost of hearing aids, dentures, or eye glasses (with the exception of one pair of glasses fitted after cataract surgery). This is unfortunate because of the following facts:

•  CDC reports that About 25 percent of adults 60 years old and older no longer have any natural teeth.
• People 65 plus have visual impairments at 3x the rate of people under 65: 18% vs 6%.
• About 1/3 of Americans between the ages of 65 and 74 have hearing problems. About 1/2 the people who are 85 and older have hearing loss. 

These items are vital for communication, but as the facts above show, they are commonly required.  Also,  they need to be replaced frequently, either because of changing need or because they are lost. They are easily misplaced in the home, but they can also turn up missing during hospital stays. Perhaps these factors played into the decision that individuals must pay for these items as one way to control Medicare costs.

This may be an inelegant analogy, but car insurance does not cover the costs of replacing air filters and fan belts perhaps for parallel reasons.

Beneficiaries and their family members should remain aware of these exceptions and others in order to reserve funds for these much needed items. Go online or contact your local Area Agency on Aging to receive additional information about what Medicare does and does not cover.  

Added 8/8/2012. Since writing this, I have learned about AUDIENT, a program to help cover the cost of hearing aids.

AUDIENT helps low income people nationwide access quality hearing aids and related care at a significantly lower cost.
AUDIENT income qualifies families to be eligible for a discount on brand name hearing aids available through the AUDIENT Alliance's national network of dedicated hearing care providers. 

Brand selection includes Oticon, Phonak, Siemens, Widex, & Unitron hearing aids. Any age – Income Test is 250% of FPL – size of household counts.

http://www.audientalliance.org/index.php

Related:

Overcoming Communication Disorders Senator and Mrs. John Glenn Inform
Hear We Go: Gender and Hearing Loss
A Detached Retina Needs Immediate Care

Quick-and-Dirty Medicare Basics

Image by Double--M

With the number of articles decrying the expense of Medicare, many people assume that this government program will cover the majority of medical expenses for retirees. This is not true. Older adults have a number of expenses they must cover in order to have adequate health care.

I hesitate to address health costs at all since there are so many variables, programs, and exceptions. Nevertheless, my short time as a volunteer Medicare counselor (six months and counting) has helped me learn a few basics, so let me share them. Again, this is very general information that only serves as a starting point.

Medicare Part A coverage (hospital insurance) is usually provided for free if you or your spouse paid Medicare taxes while working. There are some exceptions which require individuals to pay for Part A (roughly $450 a month), which you can read about online at http://www.medicare.gov/. Even if you have earned Part A coverage, there are co-pays, limits to the number of days Medicare will pay for hospital stays, and some treatments not covered at all.

Many people start Medicare Part B coverage (medical insurance) once they retire and leave their employer's medical insurance. Part B monthly premiums are usually deducted from your Social Security benefits check. Most members of the middle class will have a monthly premium near $100. There are penalties if you do not sign up on time, so start researching this well before you turn 65.