According to the 2015 Social Progress Index, the U.S. has a lot of work to do in meeting basic needs of Americans relative to other countries. The Social Progress Index ranks 133 countries based on...
Diane Archer
New poll shows a slight majority of public favors health care...
A new Kaiser Family Foundation health tracking poll surveying adults for their views on the Affordable Care Act reveals that a slight majority of the public favors health care reform today...
Community Aging in Place—Advancing Better Living for Elders...
As the population ages, many experiments are underway to understand how best to keep people living in their homes as long as possible, sometimes called community aging in place. Not only is nursing...
Should you enroll in Medicare if you have employer coverage?
Should you enroll in Medicare if you have employer coverage? The answer is less complicated than some would suggest, but it depends. If you or your spouse is actively working and you get health...
Long-term care is unaffordable for middle-income families
Where you live matters, for all kinds of reasons, including because it affects the long-term services and supports that may be available to you and the people you love. The big headline, though, is...
Why aren’t there dental therapists to provide lower-cost...
Given that even simple dental care can be very expensive and that few of us have insurance to cover that care, why aren’t there dental therapists (the dental equivalent of a nurse practitioner or...
New federal law precludes people from buying coverage for...
A new federal law, which Obama signed on April 16, precludes people with Medicare from buying supplemental insurance that offers first-dollar health care coverage. Requiring people with Medicare to...
Three ways government could help promote retirement security
In a report on our retirement crisis, the National Institute on Retirement Security puts forward a series of proposals to address the heavy retirement savings burden most Americans face and promote...
Get a dog, improve your health
Many people grow up with dogs and treasure the companionship and unconditional love a dog often offers. So, can a dog improve your health? Yes. In fact, studies suggest that a dog could improve the...
Alcohol abuse among older adults needs addressing
We need to address alcohol abuse among older adults. New research projects a doubling of the number of older adults who suffer from alcohol abuse. Between 2002 and 2006, there were an estimated...