Life expectancy is down for a second year. Drug overdoses are a big reason why. | USA Today
Health researchers have some grim news for Americans: We are dying younger, and life expectancy is now down for the second straight year — something not seen in more than half a century. One undeniable culprit is the opioid epidemic, which is cutting down young adults at alarming and increasing rates, the researchers say.
How Racism May Cause Black Mothers To Suffer The Death Of Their Infants | NPR
In February 2009, Samantha Pierce became pregnant with twins. It was a time when things were going really well in her life. She and her husband had recently gotten married. They had good jobs. “I was a kick-ass community organizer,” says Pierce, who is African-American and lives in Cleveland. She worked for a nonprofit that fought against predatory lending. The organization was growing, and Pierce had been promoted to management.
Full transcript of A game of Disability Dilemmas | Ouch! BBC
Full transcript of the Ouch Christmas Quiz: A game of Disability Dilemmas – as presented by Beth Rose with Nikki Fox, Gary O’Donoghue and Simon Minty.
The National Hispanic Council on Aging Inducts Josefina Carbonell Into Its National Hall of Fame
Josefina Carbonell, senior vice president for Long-Term Care and Nutrition at Independent Living Systems (ILS), has been selected to be inducted into the National Hispanic Council on Aging’s (NHCOA) “Hall of Fame.” The Hall of Fame Award was created to honor those whose efforts promote the dignity and well-being of older adults. The Hall of Fame induction recognizes Ms. Carbonell’s commitment to advocating on behalf of the elderly for community-based long-term care services.
Assisted suicide laws are creating a ‘duty-to-die’ medical culture | The Hill
Despite not hearing about it often, assisted suicide is a major issue in the U.S. right now. In more than 20 states this year alone lawmakers have introduced bills to legalize assisted suicide, and almost every single one of them has been struck down — with bi-partisan support. A recent bi-partisan Sense of Congress bill introduced in Washington, D.C., has opened up the discussion at a national level, and paved the way for upcoming bills and debates in 2018. If 2017 was a busy year for assisted suicide legislation, 2018 will be even more so.
Paralyzed FIU Grad Uses Robotic Suit to Receive Degree | NBC Miami
A Florida International University student who was paralyzed from the waist down wasn’t going to let that stop him from walking across the stage to accept his diploma. Shane Mosko used a robotic suit – or exoskeleton – at Sunday night’s commencement to receive his business degree from FIU. Mosko was paralyzed in a car crash in Connecticut five years ago and spent 30 days in a coma.
A disabled, biracial, (and totally normal) American family
Together we make a family
I’m a little person. My husband is average height and African-American. Our two kids are little people and we have a third on the way.
Report of banned words at CDC alarms LGBT health experts | Washington Blade
A recent report in the Washington Post that the Centers for Disease Control is barred from using certain words like “fetus,” “diversity” and “transgender” in budget documents alarmed LGBT and HIV/AIDS health experts, although the agency disputes the characterization of the story. In an article published Friday, the Post quoted an anonymous analyst who took part in a meeting in Atlanta on Thursday as saying CDC was forbidden to use seven words in documents for the fiscal year 2018 budget request. Those words are “vulnerable,” “entitlement,” “diversity,” “transgender,” “fetus,” “evidence-based” and “science-based.”
The Aging Senate Is Becoming a Problem | Bloomberg
Paul Kane has a good piece at the Washington Post about very old senators. He’s calling the current Senate the oldest ever because of all the octogenarians; by average age, it’s only “among the oldest,” according to the Congressional Research Service.When we think about aging in the Senate, it’s natural to think of those who have been there forever, such as Patrick Leahy, first elected back in 1975. What’s really changing, however, is best seen in the contest to replace Jeff Sessions in Alabama.
CNN Hero of the Year reframes how we view disability | CNN
Tears were nearly spilled on the set of “New Day” Monday morning when host Alisyn Camerota introduced 2017 CNN Hero of the Year Amy Wright. Wright, who employs and advocates for dozens of intellectually and developmentally disabled (IDD) people at her North Carolina coffee shop, Bitty & Beau’s Coffee, addressed her two children who have Down syndrome during her acceptance speech Sunday night. “I would not change you for the world, but I will change the world for you,” she promised during “CNN Heroes: An All Star Tribute.”
Reforms are needed to fix Social Security Disability Insurance backlog | The Hill
The Social Security Disability Insurance program (DI) was created 61 years ago with a worthy goal: to create a backstop to help workers pay bills and make ends meet if an illness or injury leaves them unable to work for a year or more. Unfortunately, bureaucracy, mismanagement, and a lack of permanent leadership at the Social Security Administration (SSA) have greatly reduced the program’s effectiveness. As a result, the wait time for a hearing decision by an administrative law judge on eligibility for DI benefits has seen a steady, crushing uptick. In fiscal year 2012, the average nationwide wait time for a hearing decision was 353 days. Now? It’s 605 days.
Holiday season a time for gauging aging loved ones’ wellness |News Herald News
With the holidays just days away, many area families are planning to reunite with elderly relatives, possibly after months or even years since the last visit. Along with the dearth of time spent together, children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and other relatives of older adults who serve as their caregivers often find that it’s during these holiday visits that they notice things about them changing. And oftentimes, it’s not for the better.
The Quiet Attack on the ADA Making Its Way Through Congress | Center for American Progress
In the current political climate, the assault on Americans with disabilities is no longer limited to attempts to strip them of health care, take away the services millions need to live independently and to work, or make deep cuts to programs that help many make ends meet. Now a bill making its way through Congress threatens to roll back the civil rights of people with disabilities by exactly 27 years. The bill, misleadingly titled the ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017, would hack away at the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, the landmark civil rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability and mandates that people with disabilities have “equal opportunity” to participate in American life.
GOP tax bill expands medical expense deduction for two years | CNBC
For people facing costly medical bills, there’s some good news in the final version of tax-overhaul legislation unveiled on Friday. Instead of eliminating the deduction for medical expenses as proposed in an earlier version of the sweeping legislation, the bill actually expands the deduction for two years.
More Retirees Than Ever Are Filing for Bankruptcy — Here’s Why | Madison.com (Repost from the Motley Fool)
Most people think bankruptcy is something they’ll never have to go through. You may think that because you’re diligent about spending less than you earn and avoiding excessive debt, you could never go bankrupt. However, the number of people filing for bankruptcy is increasing, especially among seniors. People aged 55 and older account for about 20% of total bankruptcy filings — a number that’s doubled since 1994, according to a study from Debt.org. And even financially responsible people go bankrupt far more often than you might expect.
So why do so many people file for bankruptcy? There are many reasons, but the most common is outstanding medical
Bruni ‘Gets It’ about Disability Bias — Except for Assisted Suicide | The National Review
When New York Times columnist Frank Bruni isn’t driving me nuts, it’s usually because he’s on vacation from his (very well written) column. Today was an exception. Bruni writes evocatively about how people with disabilities “disappear” from the view and concern of mainstream life. It seems Bruni met Nancy, a woman with post polio syndrome on a cruise where he was an invited speaker. After initially attending the formal presentations, she stopped coming because, using a wheelchair, she was ignored by fellow attendees. From, “Are You Old? Infirm? Then Kindly Disappear:”
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