No Gaps In Understanding: Here’s Your Primer On Medigap Coverage
Seniors often don’t realize that private insurers are required to offer Medigap policies, or supplemental insurance, only when people first sign up for Medicare.
A Hospital’s Human Touch: Why Taking Care In Discharging A Patient Matters
Patients and caregivers often feel abandoned and lose trust in health care professionals when they sense a lack of caring during transitions. With it, they feel better able to handle concerns and act on their doctors’ recommendations.
Support Circle: Family Caregivers Share Stories And Tips To Ease Alzheimer’s Toll
As the number of people with Alzheimer’s climbs, so does the number of loved ones caring for them. The health of 16 million unpaid U.S. caregivers has become a focus for Alzheimer’s advocacy groups.
Geriatric Assessments Could Fine-Tune Cancer Care For Older Adults
The American Society of Clinical Oncology issued a new guideline that recommends adults 65 and older receive a geriatric assessment when considering or undergoing chemotherapy.
Unlocked And Loaded: Families Confront Dementia And Guns
As more Americans are diagnosed with dementia, families who have firearms struggle with ways to stay safe. A KHN investigation uncovered dozens of cases of deaths and injuries.
Worried About Grandpa’s Guns? Here’s What You Can Do.
When a loved one gets dementia, many families get no guidance on what to do about that person’s guns. Here are legal and practical steps to stay safe.
Sin seguro y cargada: familias confrontan la demencia y las armas
A la discusión sobre la portación de armas, se suma un escenario al que se le ha prestado poca atención: ¿qué pasa en los hogares en donde hay armas y una persona con demencia?
That ‘Living Will’ You Signed? At The ER, It Could Be Open To Interpretation.
End-of-life documents express your preferences for care but may not be binding medical orders. Here’s how to better prepare for the unexpected — that your last wishes won’t be carried out.
Medicare Takes Aim At Boomerang Hospitalizations Of Nursing Home Patients
One in 5 Medicare patients who leave the hospital for a nursing home end up back in the hospital. To discourage this, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will soon give bonuses and penalties to facilities based on their rehospitalization rates.
Dodging Dementia: More Of Us Get At Least A Dozen Good, Happy Years After 65
With longer lives and lower rates of dementia, most seniors are enjoying more years of life with good cognition — a welcome trend.
Indocumentada y con cáncer: entre la muerte y la deportación
¿Qué sucede cuando un inmigrante indocumentado tiene un diagnóstico potencialmente mortal? Depende mucho de en dónde viva.
Choosing Between Death And Deportation
What happens when an undocumented immigrant has a life-threatening diagnosis? Much depends on where the person lives. And even in states with generous care for a dire illness, a patient can face difficult life-and-death choices.
Listless And Lonely In Puerto Rico, Some Older Storm Survivors Consider Suicide
More than six months ago, Hurricane Maria upended routines and shuttered services on the island leading to a sense of despair and isolation, especially among older people.
Ayudan con arte a que los cuidadores familiares tengan un merecido recreo
Hay cerca de 42 millones de personas que cuidan a un familiar, adulto o niño, enfermo como un trabajo de tiempo completo. Programas de arte les ofrecen un respiro.
Family Caregivers Are Getting A Break — And Extra Coaching
Across the country, community groups, hospitals and government agencies are stepping in to support the estimated 42 million family caregivers.
‘Rapid Autopsy’ Programs Seek Clues To Cancer Within Hours Of Death
More than a dozen centers nationwide now ask terminal patients to allow speedy study of the diseases that kill them.
New Medicare Perk For Diabetes Prevention Stumbles At Rollout
On April 1, Medicare launched a major initiative — a diabetes prevention program for seniors and people with serious disabilities— that is available in only a few cities.
Decisión de Barbara Bush al final de su vida crea debate sobre los “cuidados paliativos”
Muchos creen que elegir los “cuidados paliativos” significa abandonar el tratamiento. Expertos aclaran por qué esta creencia es errónea.
Barbara Bush’s End-Of-Life Decision Stirs Debate Over ‘Comfort Care’
The former first lady’s announcement “not to seek additional medical treatment” and to focus on “comfort care” shone a light on end-of-life choices.
‘Scary’ Lung Disease Now Afflicts More Women Than Men In U.S.
Barbara Bush’s case highlights that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) — a disease linked to long-term smoking and traditionally considered a men’s disease — is now more prevalent among women.
