Tag Archives: retirement

Report examines senior living facilities in the wake of COVID-19

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socially distanced residents in front of their retirement home

Photo: Gilbert Mercier via Flickr

The devastating toll of the coronavirus pandemic in nursing homes has had a domino effect on the entire senior living industry, according to a new report. Misconceptions about housing for older adults, along with negative perceptions about assisted living, independent living and active adult communities, have prompted many owners and operators to take a hard look at what this industry must do to reassure residents and families about safety and wellness. Continue reading →

Liz Seegert is an independent health journalist and AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. She covers older adults, baby boomers, health policy, and social determinants of health, as well as many other health issues. Her bylines include stories for PBS/NextAvenue.org. the American Journal of Nursing, TIME Health, Medscape, Consumer Reports, and Medical Economics, as well as dozens of other trade and mainstream media. Her articles have been syndicated in Forbes.com, the Los Angeles Times, the Hartford Courant, the Saturday Evening Post and other major outlets.

Continuing care retirement communities: Another version of aging in place

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Photo: The Pointe at Kilpatrick via Flickr

Photo: The Pointe at Kilpatrick via Flickr

On a recent visit to south Florida, I met a quite extraordinary 90-year-old named Jules. He’s a former high-level business executive, who still practices law and sells real estate as a second-act career. Jules lives in a Type A continuing care retirement community (CCRC) that feels more like a luxury hotel than a place for “old people.”

The former Connecticut resident described how much he loves the independent living facility, which is very similar to a luxury high rise. There’s a full service dining room — jackets required for men — that features healthy daily gourmet dinner specials like baked salmon. Linen tablecloths and wood paneling makes it feel like an upscale restaurant.  There’s also a well-stocked communal library, common living room and card/game room off the lobby. Continue reading →

Liz Seegert is an independent health journalist and AHCJ’s topic leader on aging. She covers older adults, baby boomers, health policy, and social determinants of health, as well as many other health issues. Her bylines include stories for PBS/NextAvenue.org. the American Journal of Nursing, TIME Health, Medscape, Consumer Reports, and Medical Economics, as well as dozens of other trade and mainstream media. Her articles have been syndicated in Forbes.com, the Los Angeles Times, the Hartford Courant, the Saturday Evening Post and other major outlets.

Conference offers occasion, sources to report on key issues of aging

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The Older Americans Act – signed into law on July 14, 1965 – mandated a national conference on aging every 10 years. I’ve attended the past two White House Conferences on Aging (1995, 2005), and this decade’s event is far different from the previous ones.

This conference was preceded by five, one-day, invitation-only “forums;” prior conferences featured hundreds of federally sanctioned local events. At the one-day forums, mornings were spent listening to national and local experts, then attendees separated into special interest groups for the afternoon to discuss – and then report back on – one of four designated topics. Here is how one attendee assessed the forum in Boston. Continue reading →

Eileen Beal, M.A., has been covering health care and aging since the late 1990s. She's written several health-related books. including "Age Well!" with geriatrician Robert Palmer, and her work has appeared in Aging Today, Arthritis Today,WebMD and other publications.

Low interest rates affect seniors’ ability to pay medical expenses

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A lot is written about people who don’t save enough for retirement. But what about older adults who saved diligently, only to find the value of their nest eggs depleted in this low-interest rate environment?

Judith GrahamJudith Graham (@judith_graham), AHCJ’s topic leader on aging, is writing blog posts, editing tip sheets and articles and gathering resources to help our members cover the many issues around our aging society.

If you have questions or suggestions for future resources on the topic, please send them to judith@healthjournalism.org.

I’m not talking here about stocks that take a tumble, slicing into their value. I’m talking about the interest rates that older people earn on money put away in bonds, money market funds, or certificates of deposit – and that they count on to supplement Social Security payments in their retirement years.

When these interest rates are at historically low levels, as they are now, people who counted on earning 5 percent to 7 percent annually from their savings can find themselves instead earning instead 1 percent to 2 percent. That can make a real difference in the affordability of their retirement plans and their ability to handle expenses such as payments for housing, food, prescription medications or out-of-pocket medical expenses.

For a really good examination of the issue, look at this story in the Minneapolis Star Tribune by Jennifer Bjorhus. It’s full of detailed analysis and personal stories that illustrate this problem which, it’s safe to say, is playing out with seniors in every community across the United States. Continue reading →

Judith Graham (@judith_graham), is a freelance journalist based in Denver and former topic leader on aging for AHCJ. She haswritten for the New York Times, Kaiser Health News, the Washington Post, the Journal of the American Medical Association, STAT News, the Chicago Tribune, and other publications.

Boomers face delayed retirement, dwindling health coverage for retirees

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For many baby boomers, retirement is a dream that’s slipping away.

Several publications have looked at this issue over the past few months, documenting the economic malaise that’s gripping boomers as they advance toward the age of 65 – once a retirement goalpost for many.

Judith GrahamJudith Graham (@judith_graham), AHCJ’s topic leader on aging, is writing blog posts, editing tip sheets and articles and gathering resources to help our members cover the many issues around our aging society.

If you have questions or suggestions for future resources on the topic, please send them to judith@healthjournalism.org.

The most recent story that caught my attention is by Diane Stafford of The Kansas City Star. She does a good job of telling readers what’s going on – people are delaying retirement and, increasingly, planning to work in retirement – and provides data that puts the trend in context:

“In 1991, just one in 10 workers told the Employee Benefit Research Institute that they planned to wait to retire until they were older than 65. By 2007, three in 10 said that.

“This year? More than four in 10.”

Blame it on an economic downturn that’s thrown older workers out of jobs earlier than they had expected, devastated nest eggs and diminished housing values. (Older adults’ homes are often their single most valuable asset and, when housing loses value, they have fewer resources to get them through their non-working years.) Continue reading →

Judith Graham (@judith_graham), is a freelance journalist based in Denver and former topic leader on aging for AHCJ. She haswritten for the New York Times, Kaiser Health News, the Washington Post, the Journal of the American Medical Association, STAT News, the Chicago Tribune, and other publications.