The Administration for Community Living reports that an American who turns 65 today will have a 69% chance of needing long-term care services at some point in their remaining lifespan. While the remaining 31% will never need the assistance of caregivers, about 20% of Americans turning 65 will need care services for at least five […]
The death of a loved one is a stressful time. As relatives cope with grief, they may also be under financial pressure. The death of a spouse who managed family finances might leave the surviving spouse without access to necessary funds. While the survivor can easily withdraw funds from joint bank accounts, she will need […]
The budget reconciliation act that Congress passed in 2025 — known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill” until “One Big Beautiful” was stripped from the Act’s title — affected seniors in several ways. Changes in the Medicaid program that won’t take effect until after the 2026 midterm elections is likely to cause millions of Medicaid […]
There is a lot to unpack in the recently enacted budget reconciliation bill. Known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” before that title was stripped by the Senate, the 870-page law makes changes in taxation, increases funding for immigration enforcement and the military, and reduces funding for programs that make life better for many […]
Seniors who have an online account with the Social Security Administration (SSA) probably received an email “celebrating the passage of the One Big, Beautiful Bill.” The unusual email — the first time in history that the SSA has sent mass emails to Social Security recipients boasting about the passage of a partisan bill — makes […]
Memory care units in assisted-living facilities, as well as facilities that are dedicated exclusively to patients suffering from dementia, provide residential services to older adults who suffer from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. While “memory care” includes the same services that assisted-living facilities provide to residents who do not have dementia, it often […]
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines healthy aging as “the process of maintaining good physical, mental, and social health and well-being as we grow older.” Ideally, that process begins early in life. Adopting healthy habits before middle age decreases the risk of acquiring debilitating diseases and disabling conditions later in life. Still, […]
A handful of federal and state programs provide assistance to unpaid family caregivers. Because that assistance is limited, philanthropic organizations are funding additional initiatives to give relief to people who often sacrifice their careers and health to act as caregivers for older relatives. Unpaid caregivers provide 75 to 80 percent of the total care that […]
As parents grow older and their children begin their adult lives, maintaining the family home can become a burden. When children have their own homes and families, they might feel sad to see their parents put a For Sale sign on the lawn of the home where they grew up. Still, adult children understand that […]
“Aging well” means growing older while maintaining independence, good health, and financial security. Everyone would like to age well, but some seem to age more gracefully than others. Seniors might wonder whether aging well is a matter of luck. Some suspect that their healthier peers simply won the genetic lottery and were predestined to avoid […]