On Aging

Demonstrators outside PhRMA headquarters in Washington, D.C., protest lobbying by pharmaceutical companies to keep Medicare from negotiating lower prescription drug prices.

Congress is about to act on drug price reform. Here's what you need to know

10:13pm August 06, 2022

A deal on the table in Congress would help deliver on a long-time promise: to make prescription drugs more affordable. It includes a $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket expenses for Medicare patients.

Lucille Brooks, a retiree who lives in Pittsford, New York, was sued in 2020 for nearly $8,000 by a nursing home that had taken care of her brother. The nursing home dropped the case after she showed she had no control over his money or authority to make

Health & Safety

Nursing homes are suing friends and family to collect on patients' bills

4:43pm July 28, 2022

by Noam Levey

Debt lawsuits — a byproduct of America's medical debt crisis — can ensnare not only patients but also those who help sick and older people be admitted to nursing homes, a KHN-NPR investigation finds.

Henry Jones, who kept getting sicker after 11 years of homelessness, was admitted in 1991 into Christ House, one of the first medical respite programs in the country.

Medical respite offers refuge for homeless people recovering from illness

10:12am May 30, 2022

A growing number of private insurance companies are starting to invest in medical respite — a decades-old way of caring for homeless people. Here's what's driving the trend.

Scientists have discovered that a drug used to treat HIV helps restore a particular kind of memory loss in mice. The results hold promise for humans, too.

A drug for HIV appears to reverse a type of memory loss in mice

7:01am May 28, 2022

by Jon Hamilton

In mice, the HIV drug maraviroc restored a system that links new memories that are made around the same time. The finding could help treat memory problems in people.

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After a stroke blinded one eye, Frank Bruni focused on the future

1:37pm May 17, 2022

by Terry Gross

The New York Times columnist says the stroke forced him to choose: He could focus on what had been lost, or on what remained. His memoir is The Beauty of Dusk. Originally broadcast March 22, 2022.

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People 60 years and older should not start taking daily aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes. Those currently taking it, can consult their doctors about whether to continue.

Older adults shouldn't start a routine of daily aspirin, task force says

7:35pm April 26, 2022

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force says people 60 and older should not start taking aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes. People ages 40 to 59 should consult their doctor.

Medicare's coverage for long-term care is very limited, while Medicaid generally requires people to impoverish themselves before it picks up the tab.

Washington state retools a first-in-nation payroll tax plan for long-term care costs

5:00am April 17, 2022

by Michelle Andrews

The WA Cares Fund would help alleviate the financial burden of long-term care by providing workers a lifetime benefit of $36,500. The program was delayed while lawmakers addressed equity issues.

Health & Safety

Yvonne van Amerongen: How can we reimagine elder care around human connection?

8:37am April 08, 2022

In a small village, residents enjoy time at the pub, the theater, and the park—all while living with dementia. Yvonne van Amerongen shares how we can reimagine dementia care with a social approach.

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Maurice Miller lies in bed in his room at a nursing home in Takoma Park, Md., on Thursday. The Biden administration is planning to establish a federal minimum staffing requirement for nursing homes as part of a broader push to improve care for seniors and

Health & Safety

Nursing home residents suffer from staffing shortages, but the jobs are hard to fill

9:51am April 06, 2022

by Andrea Hsu

To address the problem of poor care, President Biden is calling for a federal minimum staffing requirement in nursing homes. The nursing home industry says there aren't workers to fill the jobs.

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Steven Johnson speaks at TEDMonterey on August 3, 2021. TEDMonterey: The Case for Optimism. August 1-4, 2021, Monterey, California. Photo: Bret Hartman / TED

Steven Johnson: The Past, Present, and Future of the Human Life Span

8:34am March 25, 2022

In the last century, human life expectancy has doubled. This hour, we talk with writer Steven Johnson on the many breakthroughs that made this possible — and where we go from here.

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