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A $200 debit card won’t do much for seniors’ drug costs

If they've been listening to President Donald Trump, seniors may be expecting a $200 debit card in the mail any day now to help them pay for prescription drugs.

30 Oct 2020

Despite COVID concerns, teams venture into nursing homes to get out the vote

Each time Beverly Tucker visited a nursing home or long-term care facility this fall, she brought along a rolling tote bag packed with supplies from the Durham County Board of Elections.

29 Oct 2020

Arguing to undo the ACA. Harming Medicare. Do they go hand in hand?

It's a tried-and-true campaign strategy. Candidates go on the attack, claiming their opponent will do harm to Medicare. After all, people 65 and older are good about making it to the polls on Election Day. These voters are also generally motivated to protect the federal health insurance program for seniors.

23 Oct 2020

New report calls for improved Medicare home health benefit for older adults

Older adults have suffered disproportionately from the COVID-19 pandemic, with increased risk of severe illness and death reported across the globe.

23 Oct 2020

Research finds one-third of students misusing prescription opioids tend to use heroin later

Nearly one-third of students who reported misusing prescription opioids as high school seniors between 1997 and 2000, but did not have a history of medical use, later used heroin by age 35, according to a University of Michigan study.

21 Oct 2020

Progressive group highlights Trump, Tillis weakness on insulin price tags

During the first presidential debate of 2020, President Donald Trump touted his efforts to curb skyrocketing drug prices and declared that insulin is now "so cheap, it's like water."

20 Oct 2020

Older COVID patients battle ‘brain fog,’ weakness and emotional turmoil

For months, as Marilyn Walters has struggled to recover from COVID-19, she has repeated this prayer day and night.

20 Oct 2020

Gene variations that regulate dopamine levels in the brain may influence mobility of elderly, frail adults

Variations in a gene that regulates dopamine levels in the brain may influence the mobility of elderly and frail adults, according to new research from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

12 Oct 2020

Survey: More Americans trust Biden to efficiently lead U.S. healthcare system through COVID-19

With Election Day less than a month away, a new West Health-Gallup national survey finds more Americans trust former Vice President Joe Biden than President Donald Trump to efficiently lead the U.S. healthcare system through the COVID-19 pandemic.

8 Oct 2020

Hard lives made harder by COVID: Homeless endure a ‘slow-moving train wreck’

The message wasn't lost on Daniel Gonzalez. Early in the pandemic, one of the first things Imperial County did to ward off the virus was close the public bathrooms and, later, public cooling centers. In this sprawling Southern California desert, where summer brings blistering triple-digit heat, that lack of access could amount to a death sentence for people without shelter.

8 Oct 2020

Older adults use cannabis for medical purposes, study finds

With growing interest in its potential health benefits and new legislation favoring legalization in more states, cannabis use is becoming more common among older adults.

7 Oct 2020

Lifetime experiences help older adults build resilience to pandemic trauma

Older adults are especially vulnerable physically during the coronavirus pandemic. But they're also notably resilient psychologically, calling upon a lifetime of experience and perspective to help them through difficult times.

7 Oct 2020

Tuned lighting helps improve sleep in nursing home residents, study finds

Nursing home residents tend to fall asleep at all hours of the day, and during the night, their sleep may be interrupted by periods of wakefulness.

6 Oct 2020

Long-term care system in British Columbia minimizes SARS-CoV-2 transmission

British Columbia found that BC was better prepared for the pandemic and responded in a more coordinated and decisive manner, leading to far fewer deaths than in Ontario.

1 Oct 2020

New research collaboration focuses on advancing and strengthening primary care

Research has shown the strongest evidence for improving health outcomes in the population is by strengthening primary care.

30 Sep 2020

Study reveals underrepresentation of older people in COVID-19 trials

A study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine revealed that older persons are highly likely to be excluded from the majority of COVID-19 trials that seek to establish effective treatments, as well as find a preventive vaccine.

28 Sep 2020

Seniors the optimal target for SARS-CoV-2 vaccination

ith several vaccines already in stage 3 clinical trials, a study by University of Warwick researchers and published on the preprint server medRxiv in September 2020 discusses the use of computer modeling techniques in order to achieve optimal vaccine coverage.

28 Sep 2020

California’s deadliest spring in 20 years suggests COVID undercount

The first five months of the COVID-19 pandemic in California rank among the deadliest in state history, deadlier than any other consecutive five-month period in at least 20 years.

21 Sep 2020

Poor health linked to disparities in internet use among older adults

Increasingly, everyday activities and services are shifting online, making the ability to use the internet an essential skill. The current COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted the importance of digital connectivity, especially for older and vulnerable adults, for their continued contact with family and friends.

15 Sep 2020

New dental treatment helps fill cavities and insurance gaps for seniors

Dental hygienist Jennifer Geiselhofer often cleans the teeth of senior patients who can't easily get to a dentist's office. But until recently, if she found a cavity, there was little she could do.

15 Sep 2020