Research by Dr. Kenneth Langa, an expert in the demography of aging and a professor of medicine at the University of Michigan, also shows that the prevalence of dementia has fallen in the U.S. — a trend observed in developed countries across the globe. Read more from KHN here.

A terminal illness is one from which a person is not expected to recover, even with treatment — for instance, advanced metastatic cancer. Bouts of illness that can be treated — such as an exacerbation of heart failure — are “critical” not “terminal” and should not activate a living will. To be activated, one or two physicians must certify that your living will should go into effect, depending on the state where you live.

The section of a living will specifying that you don’t want CPR is a statement of a preference, not a DNR order. DNR orders are often wrongly equated with “do not treat” at all.

In a survey, a surprising 75 percent of 223 emergency physicians said they wouldn’t have pursued defibrillation if the patient had experienced cardiac arrest.

Read more from KHN here.

A combination of longer life spans and spiraling health care costs has left an estimated 62 percent of nursing homes residents dependent on Medicaid, usually the lowest-paying form of insurance. In Alaska, Mississippi, West Virginia and the District of Columbia, Medicaid was the primary payer for the room, board and daily care for three-quarters or more of nursing home residents in 2016, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Many have their medical coverage outside of the nursing home covered by Medicare.

Nursing homes have been unintentionally rewarded by decades of colliding government payment policies, which gave both hospitals and nursing homes financial incentives for the transfers. That has left the most vulnerable patients often ping-ponging between institutions, wreaking havoc with patients’ care.

The $20.7 million-per-year  Medical Foster Home program provides housing and care for more than 1,000 veterans in 42 states and Puerto Rico, serving as an alternative to nursing home care for those who cannot live safely on their own.

Veterans pay their caregivers $1,500 to $3,000 a month, depending on location, saving the government about $10,000 a month in nursing home care. It has been difficult to scale up, though, because the VA accepts only foster homes that meet strict qualifications.

Improvements in education and nutrition, better control of hypertension and cholesterol, cognitively demanding jobs in middle age, and social engagement in later life may all contribute to this expanded period of good brain health, a recent study noted. Read more from KHN here.