Sorted by date Results 751 - 775 of 947
Whose living are you paying for? Roughly 62 percent of people age 50 and up are providing financial support to family members, according to a study by Merrill Lynch Wealth Management. Some are helping out with the needs of their elderly relatives, but for many, their adult children have moved home — or never left. Whether the support is a one-time need or ongoing over many years, the baby boomers who are shelling out money do so without realizing they’re putting their own retirement security at risk. After all, even people who earn plenty hav...
With the recent floods in Texas, Oklahoma and other states, consumers looking to purchase a used car—even in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska—should be wary. Scammers and unscrupulous car dealers often ship these damaged vehicles to other states to sell to unsuspecting buyers after natural disasters such as hurricanes and floods. The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) estimates up to 10,000 insured vehicles in Texas had water damage from the May 2015 floods. Flood-damaged vehicles that have been declared a total loss by an insurance com...
Millions of seniors are struggling to put food on the table, a dramatic spike in the problem, according to two new reports. Despite the recent uptick in the U.S. economy, an astonishingly large number of Americans – 9.6 million over the age of 60 – could not reliably buy or access food at least part of the year. That’s one in every six older men and women. And those numbers are much lower than the reality. Analysts say that large groups of seniors aren’t even being included in those numbers because it’s hard to reach them to find out they aren...
When families help each other out financially, who typically pays: Older family members supporting the younger ones, or vice-versa? Despite the growing wave of retiring Baby Boomers, it’s far more likely to be older Americans transferring cash to their adult children or grandchildren than the other way around, according to recent research by EBRI. EBRI’s analysis shows that a very small portion of older households receive transfers from their younger generations, while a much larger section of older households transfer money to their you...
Interested in learning more about businesses and agencies providing senior services in the Anchorage area? Want to get the word out about your own service? The monthly Interagency Breakfast, sponsored by Older Persons Action Group, is an opportunity for all of the above. Informal, early and free, with breakfast provided. The August meeting is Aug. 12, hosted by Mountain-Pacific Quality Health at an off-site location. Begins at 8 a.m. For location information, please RSVP by calling Older Persons Action Group at 276-1059....
The Alaska Commission on aging will holding a quarterly meeting in the Kenai area September 15 – 17. The primary focus of the meeting will be to visit service providers in the Kenai area to see what is working and what additional needs may be needed. On Tuesday, Sept. 15,the commission will meet at the Soldotna Senior Center from 1 to 5 p.m. The commissioners will listen to reports from the Dept. of Health and Social Services, Division of Senior and Disabilities Services, and Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, among others. There will be a p...
Results of a survey recently released by AARP Alaska highlight the level of caregiving Alaska families are performing for family members and other loved ones. Commissioned to learn about experiences with and opinions of Alaska voters age 45-plus on family caregiving, the survey found that nearly all (96 percent) respondents who are current or past caregivers say it is important to have services that allow people to stay in their own homes as they age. The survey results were released at the end of April, with press statements highlighting the k...
If you watch much TV you’ve probably heard the ads for free or nearly free medical items, possibly a knee brace, back brace, or other device. “If you qualify for Medicare, then you qualify to get these items or services – all you have to do is ask. You don’t even have to need the items.” Why would the manufacturers do this? Because to get your freebies, you have to give them your valuable Medicare ID number, or other insurance ID, so they bill for the items. It is a way to drum up business, but the fact is, you may not receive the items at all....
Medicare is serious about enlisting your help to fight fraud. If you suspect fraud and you meet all five of these conditions, you could be eligible for a reward of $1,000. Here are the conditions: 1. You report your suspected Medicare fraud. The allegation must be specific, not general. 2. The suspected Medicare fraud you report must be confirmed as potential fraud by the Program Safeguard Contractor, the Zone Program Integrity Contractor, or the Medicare Drug Integrity Contractor (the Medicare contractors responsible for investigating...
Editor’s note: This press statement was received from Sen. Murkowski’s office on June 4. Senator Lisa Murkowski joined five of her Senate colleagues in introducing the bipartisan “Treat and Reduce Obesity Act,” which would help prevent chronic diseases and lower health care costs by addressing America’s growing obesity epidemic. This legislation gives Medicare beneficiaries and their healthcare providers additional tools to reduce obesity by improving access to weight-loss counseling and new prescription drugs for chronic weight managemen...
Village to Village, the ever popular program for seniors throughout the Lower 48, will soon be making its way to Alaska. The planning committee along with North Star Council on Aging are planning to open a similar program in the Fairbanks area by 2016. “We’re still in the planning process,” says Barbara Lando, head of the planning committee. “We want it to be modeled after the Village to Village programs in the Lower 48, but we’re thinking about renaming it due to the popularity of the use of the word ‘village’ for the actual villages.” As...
Anchorage seniors, your input is needed to help the Anchorage Economic Development Corp. complete its “Live. Work. Play” report on quality of life and making Anchorage the number one city to live, work and play in by 2025. The survey is short and to the point, with two questions: 1. Why did you move to Anchorage, and 2. Why would you leave? “It’s important to include seniors in this survey because they’re a such a big part of Anchorage, and their opinions are vital to the community,” says Denise Knapp, Executive Director at Mabel T. Caverly...
The prices that hospitals ask customers to pay for a series of common procedures have increased by more than 10 percent between 2011 and 2013 – more than double the rate of inflation, according to new data released recently by Medicare. But the amounts paid by Medicare have stayed flat, according to that data. The hospitals’ rising list prices mainly affect the uninsured and people who use hospitals outside their insurance network. The 2013 Medicare billing information was part of a large release of data breaking down spending based on hos...
The Municipality of Anchorage has followed through on its plan to vacate occupants from the John Thomas Bldg., Older Persons Action Group's home for more than 40 years. The building, located on the outskirts of downtown Anchorage on the corner of Third Avenue and Cordova Street, was put up for sale in 2012, over the objections of the non-profit organizations residing in the building, and their supporters, including several members of the Anchorage Assembly. Organizations, including the Mabel T....
Interested in learning more about businesses and agencies providing senior services in the Anchorage area? Want to get the word out about your own service? The monthly Interagency Breakfast, sponsored by Older Persons Action Group, is an opportunity for all of the above. Informal, early and free, with breakfast provided. The June meeting is June 10, hosted by AARP Alaska. Begins at 8 a.m. RSVP by calling Older Persons Action Group for more information on these events or to be added to our e-mail reminder list, 276-1059....
With a $3.9 billion dollar deficit, it’s important for the legislature to make big cuts, and we have. However, cuts to our most vulnerable seniors is a mistake, and that’s one of the issues we continue to debate. Established in 2007, the Senior Benefits Program helps provide Alaskan seniors on limited incomes the means to afford basic life necessities, such as food and housing. While we recognize that times are tough and Alaska must tighten its belt, we cannot support doing it on the backs of Alaska’s pioneers. Sen. Berta Gardner (D-An...
Check off “budget” on the Republicans “can govern” checklist. Congressional Republicans recently approved a budget bill, the first passed by Congress in six years, and the first since the party took control of both chambers earlier this year. The non-binding document, however, does not go to President Obama for his signature. Instead, it helps guide Congress in framing how it wants to consider all of the government agency appropriations bills. It will also serve as a Republican fiscal policy guideline and sets the stage for the 2016 preside...
“The average family moves or changes homes every five years,” says John Bissell of Royal Alaskan Movers, and in honor of the beginning of a summer of endless brown boxes and packing tape, the Better Business Bureau dubs May as National Moving Awareness Month. The month may be wrapping-up, but movers are just kicking into high gear in Alaska. When looking for a moving company, it’s important to take note of the kind of moves the moving company usually performs, says Matthew Voisine, office manager at the Denali Group. “There’s a big differenc...
Staff from Alaska’s Social Security office will be available for questions via videoconferencing at the following locations and times: Kodiak Job Center, on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month (June 9 and 23), 9 a.m. to noon. Kenai Senior Center, on the first and third Wednesday of each month (June 3 and 17), 9 a.m. to noon. Ketchikan Job Center, every Thursday (June 4, 11, 18 and 25), noon to 3 p.m. Social Security provides toll-free telephone service to all of Alaska. Residents in Alaska’s southeast communities can call the Jun...
After 17 temporary fixes over the past 11 years, Congress has approved legislation permanently blocking perennial cuts in physicians’ Medicare fees. In a rare show of genuine bipartisanship, the House and Senate both overwhelmingly passed the bill. It should become easier for doctors to make a living while taking Medicare patients and help seniors keep their doctors who accept Medicare. In a 1997 budget agreement, Congress set up a formula, known as the Sustainable Growth Rate, or the SGR, which called for annual cuts in Medicare physician p...
Health care and the ways we find health information have changed drastically over the years. New technologies in and out of the doctor's office have allowed us access to information like never before. It's incredibly easy to pull out your smartphone or tablet and search "diabetes symptoms" or "home treatments for the flu." But should we trust everything we read online? The National Library of Medicine (NLM) and Linda Shepard, registered health ministry and community outreach nurse at Providence...
About 90 percent of long-term, informal health care in the United States is provided by unpaid caregivers, typically women, who spend more than $5,000 annually in out-of-pocket expenses. A survey from the University of Alaska Fairbanks and Fairbanks Memorial Hospital seeks to better identify the strengths and needs of Alaska’s informal caregivers and to ultimately help them. “These unpaid caregivers are the backbone of our health-care system,” said Ellen Lopez, project leader and public health researcher at the University of Alaska Fairb...
As of this writing it is difficult to wrap-up the legislative session, as they are still in session (day 4 past the regular 90 day period). Legislators have not yet come to agreement on the state’s budget, which they must pass, according to the state constitution. Nevertheless, it has, to this point, been an interesting, if not altogether productive session. There are many reasons for this. This is the first year of the 29th Legislature, with many new faces in the House and Senate, as well as a new administration. After an election, there is a...
Chickaloon Village Traditional Council (CVTC) celebrated construction of its new health and wellness building – Ahtnahwt’aene’ Nay’dini’aa den (Aht-nah Hwĭ-tănnă Nie-dĭnny-ah den) Gathering Place, meaning “Ahtna People Chickaloon Place,” – with a large group of elders, tribal leaders, community members, funders and partners at its groundbreaking early April in Sutton. The new 8,100 square foot facility will be located at 21117 E. Myers Avenue and will house an expanded C’eyiits’ Hwnax (kie-eetz haw-nah) Life House Community Health Center...
Interested in learning more about businesses and agencies providing senior services in the Anchorage area? Want to get the word out about your own service? The monthly Interagency Breakfast, sponsored by Older Persons Action Group, is an opportunity for all of the above. Informal, early and free, with breakfast provided for business and agency representatives. The May meeting is May 13 and will be hosted by the Anchorage Aging and Disability Resource Center. Begins at 8 a.m. Call Older Persons Action Group to RSVP and get directions to the...
