Here’s a new report on housing in various states from the AARP Public Policy Institute, State Housing Profiles: A Special Analysis of the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, by Andrew Kochera.
A few details about householders (heads of households) over age 50 from the report:
• Wisconsin ranks 18 among states with number of households headed by those over age 50.
• Twenty percent rent, 38% own with mortgages, and 43% own without mortgages (over 100% because of rounding.)
• Nationally, the number of households headed by someone age 50 or older increased by about 25% between 1990 and 2004.
• Of those, 16% were racial minorities in 2004, compared with 5% in Wisconsin.
• About 4% of householders over age 50 have a grandchild living in their households. In Wisconsin, it’s 2%.
• Nearly 40% of households with heads over age 50 have at least one person with a disability, most commonly physical limits related to walking, climbing, reaching, lifting, or carrying. In Wisconsin, it’s 35% (but 51% for renters).
• A few more 50+ Wisconsinites own their homes free and clear than the nation as a whole,(43% vs. 40%,) but that’s down from 53% in 1990.
• Only 5% live in condos in Wisconsin, compared with 7% in the US, but we’re catching up: in 1990, only 2% did.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Medicare prescription drug coverage: Wisconsin’s news
Prescription drug coverage for seniors has been in the news a long time. And it’ll be in the news for a long time to come. Wisconsin plays a big role in developing better ideas and new initiatives—and fighting to keep them afloat.
Earlier this month, the Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups (CWAG) learned it was one of nine organizations to share a $900,000 grant to “help fund initiatives designed to identify, educate and help eligible beneficiaries in their communities to apply for the Low-Income Subsidy (LIS) and other prescription savings programs.”
The grants were awarded by My Medicare Matters, a community-based education initiative sponsored by the National Council on Aging and the Access to Benefits Coalition, with support from AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP.
This is especially important because, as CWAG director Tom Frazier will testify before the Senate Committee on Aging tomorrow (March 28), “. . .in Wisconsin. . .we have the second worst record in the country in terms of applications for extra help being approved—just over one-third (35.4%) of applications are approved by the Social Security Administration. This means that the vast majority of the lowest income seniors would not be eligible for extra help under Part D and, therefore, would face significantly higher out-of-pocket costs. As you have also heard, many SeniorCare enrollees with incomes over 160% FPL also would face much higher costs.”
SeniorCare is Wisconsin’s model drug reimbursement program that is scheduled to end unless the state receives a waiver to continue it. The federal government has been clear that it is not inclined to offer the waiver, despite much good evidence of the lower cost and greater satisfaction with SeniorCare than Part D programs.
Some data from a SeniorCare factsheet dated March 12 from the state DHHS office:
An AARP study found that 94 percent of SeniorCare recipients are better served under SeniorCare than they would be under Medicare Part D
The average annual federal subsidy for a SeniorCare waiver participant is $617, about half as much as the $1,174 the federal government spends to subsidize a Part D participant
We estimate that SeniorCare will save Medicaid roughly $697 million between 2008 to 2010. This includes $404 million in reduced federal expenditures
SeniorCare has already saved Wisconsin seniors and taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars since its inception. In State Fiscal Year 2006 alone, SeniorCare reduced drug costs to Wisconsin seniors by almost $200 million
CWAG’s Glenna Schuman has asked people to:
• Call the Whitehouse leaving a message for the President: (these are all long distance calls, but worth it to make your voice heard. Thank the President and leave your name and address or at least the city and state.
202-456-1111 is the comment line
202-456-1414 is a live voice that will direct you to the comment line
202-456-2461 is a fax line if you would like to write a note and fax it.
• Call Secretary Mike Leavitt’s office at 1-877-696-6775, tell the recording that this is about Senior Care, your city and state, and that you are for it.
• Or write the President (The Whitehouse, Washington DC, 20500) and Secretary Leavitt (200 Independence Ave. S.W. Washington, D.C. 20201). The message can be as simple as, “Please SAVE Wisconsin’s SeniorCare prescription drug program.” If you have a story, briefly tell that.
Earlier this month, the Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups (CWAG) learned it was one of nine organizations to share a $900,000 grant to “help fund initiatives designed to identify, educate and help eligible beneficiaries in their communities to apply for the Low-Income Subsidy (LIS) and other prescription savings programs.”
The grants were awarded by My Medicare Matters, a community-based education initiative sponsored by the National Council on Aging and the Access to Benefits Coalition, with support from AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP.
This is especially important because, as CWAG director Tom Frazier will testify before the Senate Committee on Aging tomorrow (March 28), “. . .in Wisconsin. . .we have the second worst record in the country in terms of applications for extra help being approved—just over one-third (35.4%) of applications are approved by the Social Security Administration. This means that the vast majority of the lowest income seniors would not be eligible for extra help under Part D and, therefore, would face significantly higher out-of-pocket costs. As you have also heard, many SeniorCare enrollees with incomes over 160% FPL also would face much higher costs.”
SeniorCare is Wisconsin’s model drug reimbursement program that is scheduled to end unless the state receives a waiver to continue it. The federal government has been clear that it is not inclined to offer the waiver, despite much good evidence of the lower cost and greater satisfaction with SeniorCare than Part D programs.
Some data from a SeniorCare factsheet dated March 12 from the state DHHS office:
An AARP study found that 94 percent of SeniorCare recipients are better served under SeniorCare than they would be under Medicare Part D
The average annual federal subsidy for a SeniorCare waiver participant is $617, about half as much as the $1,174 the federal government spends to subsidize a Part D participant
We estimate that SeniorCare will save Medicaid roughly $697 million between 2008 to 2010. This includes $404 million in reduced federal expenditures
SeniorCare has already saved Wisconsin seniors and taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars since its inception. In State Fiscal Year 2006 alone, SeniorCare reduced drug costs to Wisconsin seniors by almost $200 million
CWAG’s Glenna Schuman has asked people to:
• Call the Whitehouse leaving a message for the President: (these are all long distance calls, but worth it to make your voice heard. Thank the President and leave your name and address or at least the city and state.
202-456-1111 is the comment line
202-456-1414 is a live voice that will direct you to the comment line
202-456-2461 is a fax line if you would like to write a note and fax it.
• Call Secretary Mike Leavitt’s office at 1-877-696-6775, tell the recording that this is about Senior Care, your city and state, and that you are for it.
• Or write the President (The Whitehouse, Washington DC, 20500) and Secretary Leavitt (200 Independence Ave. S.W. Washington, D.C. 20201). The message can be as simple as, “Please SAVE Wisconsin’s SeniorCare prescription drug program.” If you have a story, briefly tell that.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Angel to Milwaukee’s older and vulnerable people: Gwen Jackson
“She walks on non-profit water,” said Peter Goldberg (president and CEO of the Alliance for Children and Families) of Consortium member Gwen Jackson in a Journal Sentinel article by Felicia Thomas-Lynn.
Ms. Jackson is an indefatigable volunteer and champion of the disadvantaged and the vulnerable. She was one of the first people I met at a Consortium event when I started work here in October, and she’s been an important presence at most events since.
As Goldberg said, “When Gwen Jackson speaks, people think.” There’s not much higher praise for an elder (or anyone) than that.
A member of the Senior Citizen Hall of Fame and Milwaukee County Commission on Aging, she serves organizations ranging from the American Red Cross to Early Music Now. There’s even a building named after her.
A fund to help elderly people and others who live in group homes throughout the state, the Gwen T. Jackson Angel Fund, was created through Volunteers of America of Wisconsin.
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t think the fund is most appropriately named!
Ms. Jackson is an indefatigable volunteer and champion of the disadvantaged and the vulnerable. She was one of the first people I met at a Consortium event when I started work here in October, and she’s been an important presence at most events since.
As Goldberg said, “When Gwen Jackson speaks, people think.” There’s not much higher praise for an elder (or anyone) than that.
A member of the Senior Citizen Hall of Fame and Milwaukee County Commission on Aging, she serves organizations ranging from the American Red Cross to Early Music Now. There’s even a building named after her.
A fund to help elderly people and others who live in group homes throughout the state, the Gwen T. Jackson Angel Fund, was created through Volunteers of America of Wisconsin.
I don’t know anyone who doesn’t think the fund is most appropriately named!
Friday, March 23, 2007
Aging in community: housing, services-- the whole enchilada
Yesterday, some 30 people gathered over cheese enchiladas at the United Community Center to discuss ways to "get it right" with senior housing. And that includes making sure the services are there to support a great life into and through old age.
The Next Steps meeting was a follow-up of our earlier Housing Options Summit and, informally, of the UWM Senior Housing Ideas Competition.
Around the table were developers, case managers, architects, mortgage lenders, senior advocates, landscape architects, county department directors, grad students, consultants who put together deals, program developers, senior citizens, and more. Most were concerned mainly with older adults, but some represented the community of disabled people, whose needs are very similar.
They came because they know about the gaps in housing and supportive services that make it hard to age in place—or live at home with disabilities. And they brought with them ideas, hopes, frustrations, and most of all, a desire to make a real difference now.
What’s needed is affordable, appropriate, accessible housing. Right now, the supply of housing that meets all three of those criteria is small. Services and the stuff to maintain a life need to be incorporated into the residence or the nearby community. Safety, beauty, respect, and community life matter. So does transportation. And so does variety: no one size fits all.
No surprises there. But what’s missing is coordination to fit all the parts together, resources and a plan. Political scientist Norton Long said forty years ago that people building economically viable cities are coming to realize that the vision they are seek is not just bigger roads and more tax base but “the possibility of attaining a shared common goal of a better life.” Plans come and go, and we keep trying to figure out how to do it better.
The next step in the process will be engaging in strategic planning, looking at models that work and can be replicated (or improved upon), like Lapham Park. We’re looking for ways to bring all our knowledge and wisdom to existing and new planning and decision-making processes.
We are also looking at what we need to build in terms of better coordination between the range of services and housing options. Stay tuned for more information or forward your name if you are interested in being a part of these exciting developments.
The Next Steps meeting was a follow-up of our earlier Housing Options Summit and, informally, of the UWM Senior Housing Ideas Competition.
Around the table were developers, case managers, architects, mortgage lenders, senior advocates, landscape architects, county department directors, grad students, consultants who put together deals, program developers, senior citizens, and more. Most were concerned mainly with older adults, but some represented the community of disabled people, whose needs are very similar.
They came because they know about the gaps in housing and supportive services that make it hard to age in place—or live at home with disabilities. And they brought with them ideas, hopes, frustrations, and most of all, a desire to make a real difference now.
What’s needed is affordable, appropriate, accessible housing. Right now, the supply of housing that meets all three of those criteria is small. Services and the stuff to maintain a life need to be incorporated into the residence or the nearby community. Safety, beauty, respect, and community life matter. So does transportation. And so does variety: no one size fits all.
No surprises there. But what’s missing is coordination to fit all the parts together, resources and a plan. Political scientist Norton Long said forty years ago that people building economically viable cities are coming to realize that the vision they are seek is not just bigger roads and more tax base but “the possibility of attaining a shared common goal of a better life.” Plans come and go, and we keep trying to figure out how to do it better.
The next step in the process will be engaging in strategic planning, looking at models that work and can be replicated (or improved upon), like Lapham Park. We’re looking for ways to bring all our knowledge and wisdom to existing and new planning and decision-making processes.
We are also looking at what we need to build in terms of better coordination between the range of services and housing options. Stay tuned for more information or forward your name if you are interested in being a part of these exciting developments.
The passing of a friend: Eldon E. Murray
This message from William "Bill" Serpe, Executive Director, Senior Action in a Gay Environment (SAGE)/Milwaukee:
The final details have been made for the Memorial Service for Eldon E. Murray, founder of SAGE/Milwaukee. Eldon passed away on March 5th.
The Memorial will be held on March 31st at the Washington Park Senior Center, 4420 W. Vliet Street in Milwaukee. The service will begin at 1:30 p.m.
I am hoping that as many SAGE/Milwaukee members current and past as well as SAGE/Milwaukee friends can attend. Without Eldon Murray there would be no SAGE/Milwaukee.
Thank you all. See you at the Memorial.
The final details have been made for the Memorial Service for Eldon E. Murray, founder of SAGE/Milwaukee. Eldon passed away on March 5th.
The Memorial will be held on March 31st at the Washington Park Senior Center, 4420 W. Vliet Street in Milwaukee. The service will begin at 1:30 p.m.
I am hoping that as many SAGE/Milwaukee members current and past as well as SAGE/Milwaukee friends can attend. Without Eldon Murray there would be no SAGE/Milwaukee.
Thank you all. See you at the Memorial.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Resources, we’ve got resources
So much information, so little time! Here’s a list of resources that have come across our desks recently. Most are new; one isn’t, but the issue of paying caregivers is before us always, and especially as government budgets are being tweaked.
Aging workforce
“The National Association of Professional Employer Organizations wanted to know what the small businesses its members serve are doing about their aging work forces.” Don’t be put off by the authorship: Older and Wiser: As the Work Force Ages, Small Businesses Change, Too is a fascinating and useful report.
Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer’s Association report on prevalence, March 2007.
“There are now more than 5 million people in the United States living with Alzheimer’s disease. This number includes 4.9 million people over the age of 65 and between 200,000 and 500,000 people under age 65 with early onset Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. This is a 10 percent increase from the previous prevalence nationwide estimate of 4.5 million.”
According to Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), “Now we need an All-American effort to not only find breakthroughs, but to make sure we are giving patients and their families the support they need.”
Medicare and Medicaid primers
New Medicare primer
New Medicaid primer
“Together, Medicare and Medicaid provide health coverage to about 90 million Americans. To help explain the two programs, the Kaiser Family Foundation has issued a new primer on the Medicare program and an updated version of its primer on the Medicaid program. Prepared by Foundation staff, the primers provide an overview of the programs, who they serve, how the programs work, and how they are financed.”
Paying for quality care
Paying For Quality Care: State and Local Strategies for Improving Wages and Benefits for Personal Care Assistants “was written by Dorie Seavey and Vera Salter in October 2006 and published by the AARP Public Policy Institute. This report examines state and local initiatives to improve wages and benefits for direct-care workers delivering Medicaid personal care services. The authors outline seven strategies -- wage pass-through legislation, rate enhancements linked to provider performance goals, updated reimbursement rates, litigation against state Medicaid agencies, collective bargaining, living wage ordinances and minimum wage improvements, and health insurance initiatives -- discussing the advantages and disadvantages of each.”
Aging workforce
“The National Association of Professional Employer Organizations wanted to know what the small businesses its members serve are doing about their aging work forces.” Don’t be put off by the authorship: Older and Wiser: As the Work Force Ages, Small Businesses Change, Too is a fascinating and useful report.
Alzheimer’s disease
Alzheimer’s Association report on prevalence, March 2007.
“There are now more than 5 million people in the United States living with Alzheimer’s disease. This number includes 4.9 million people over the age of 65 and between 200,000 and 500,000 people under age 65 with early onset Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. This is a 10 percent increase from the previous prevalence nationwide estimate of 4.5 million.”
According to Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), “Now we need an All-American effort to not only find breakthroughs, but to make sure we are giving patients and their families the support they need.”
Medicare and Medicaid primers
New Medicare primer
New Medicaid primer
“Together, Medicare and Medicaid provide health coverage to about 90 million Americans. To help explain the two programs, the Kaiser Family Foundation has issued a new primer on the Medicare program and an updated version of its primer on the Medicaid program. Prepared by Foundation staff, the primers provide an overview of the programs, who they serve, how the programs work, and how they are financed.”
Paying for quality care
Paying For Quality Care: State and Local Strategies for Improving Wages and Benefits for Personal Care Assistants “was written by Dorie Seavey and Vera Salter in October 2006 and published by the AARP Public Policy Institute. This report examines state and local initiatives to improve wages and benefits for direct-care workers delivering Medicaid personal care services. The authors outline seven strategies -- wage pass-through legislation, rate enhancements linked to provider performance goals, updated reimbursement rates, litigation against state Medicaid agencies, collective bargaining, living wage ordinances and minimum wage improvements, and health insurance initiatives -- discussing the advantages and disadvantages of each.”
Friday, March 16, 2007
Rethinking: aging and more
“In order to survive, mankind needs a different way of thinking.” Albert Einstein
I’m a big believer in attending conferences. Maybe that’s because I always get salted with fire by new ideas and new people.
And sometimes, you have to go out of town to meet the people back home, as I learned when running into Pat from Interfaith Older Adult Programs and Jeannine, who’s in the UWM Center on Age and Community certificate program in applied gerontology, at the Annual ASA-NCOA Joint Conference in Chicago earlier this month.
Rethinking aging, being leaders, and seizing the chance to do something amazing to improve the lives of older adults was the theme of the conference. I’ll be using this blog as a place to share some of the ideas gleaned there. Please share yours here, too—whether you attended the conference or not.
(You can also explore some of the conference best ideas at the Milwaukee Aging Consortium’s Best Ideas Breakfast March 27.)
Something concrete for you: the Blue Moon Fund has made available for free download a wonderful document: Toolkit for Viable Futures. From the intro:
“If you are an administrator, advocate, or practitioner in
aging, you are on the front lines of planning and providing
services for a society that is aging. How you make your
decisions and use your resources will go a long way to
determine the quality of later life for today’s older adults,
and the legacy that elders will leave for generations to
come. You need strategies that connect the generations.”
Overheard at the conference:
Boomers are just not prepared adequately for aging.
“We need more vaccines, not more Viagra.”
Because the business of healthcare is failing, we need to find ways to promote wellness—and develop structures that make best use of available wisdom.
“We have research that shows if you live in a community where you can get out and go where you want to go, you are doing better than people who can’t do that.”
Perhaps we need to play to find serious answers: “Genius is childhood recalled at will.” (Pierre Charles Baudelaire)
Your thoughts?
I’m a big believer in attending conferences. Maybe that’s because I always get salted with fire by new ideas and new people.
And sometimes, you have to go out of town to meet the people back home, as I learned when running into Pat from Interfaith Older Adult Programs and Jeannine, who’s in the UWM Center on Age and Community certificate program in applied gerontology, at the Annual ASA-NCOA Joint Conference in Chicago earlier this month.
Rethinking aging, being leaders, and seizing the chance to do something amazing to improve the lives of older adults was the theme of the conference. I’ll be using this blog as a place to share some of the ideas gleaned there. Please share yours here, too—whether you attended the conference or not.
(You can also explore some of the conference best ideas at the Milwaukee Aging Consortium’s Best Ideas Breakfast March 27.)
Something concrete for you: the Blue Moon Fund has made available for free download a wonderful document: Toolkit for Viable Futures. From the intro:
“If you are an administrator, advocate, or practitioner in
aging, you are on the front lines of planning and providing
services for a society that is aging. How you make your
decisions and use your resources will go a long way to
determine the quality of later life for today’s older adults,
and the legacy that elders will leave for generations to
come. You need strategies that connect the generations.”
Overheard at the conference:
Boomers are just not prepared adequately for aging.
“We need more vaccines, not more Viagra.”
Because the business of healthcare is failing, we need to find ways to promote wellness—and develop structures that make best use of available wisdom.
“We have research that shows if you live in a community where you can get out and go where you want to go, you are doing better than people who can’t do that.”
Perhaps we need to play to find serious answers: “Genius is childhood recalled at will.” (Pierre Charles Baudelaire)
Your thoughts?
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