Blog - Better Health While Aging

Medicare: The ABCDs to Know & Tips for Open Enrollment

Every year, Medicare has an open enrollment period: October 15 – December 7.

During this time, Medicare beneficiaries can do the following:

Switch from Original Medicare to Medicare Advantage, or vice versa;
Switch from one Medicare Advantage plan to another;
Change Medicare Part D (prescription drug) plan; or
Enroll in a Medicare Part D (a late enrollment penalty may apply).

Medicare health and drug plans can make changes each year—things like cost, coverage, and what providers and pharmacies are in their networks. It is important for Medicare beneficiaries to review their current plans, options, and needs for the next year. Many beneficiaries fail to take any action during open enrollment; Medicare is not a “set it and forget it” insurance plan.

Before you can start deciding if and what to change about your Medicare benefits, you have to understand the basics of Medicare.

In this article, I’ll review the basics of Medicare Parts A, B, C and D. Then, I’ll share some tips on navigating the Medicare Open Enrollment period and how to get help, if you’re considering making a switch or if you need help affording the Medicare premiums. [Read more…]

Financial Exploitation in Aging: What to Know & What to Do

by Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH 58 Comments

Here’s an upsetting situation that comes up a lot, and may have come up for you: is someone financially taking advantage of Mom or Dad?

It’s a pretty legitimate concern to have. To begin with, most people know that there are plenty of “scammers” out there, phoning or mailing older adults with deceptive information designed to hoodwink them out of some of their savings.

But there’s actually another form of exploitation that may be more common, and is often harder for families to address.

That would be exploitation perpetrated by a someone the older person knows and has a personal relationship with.

Sometimes the person suspected of exploitation is relatively new to the older person’s life, such as a new romantic interest, friend, or paid caregiver.

In other cases, family members become concerned that someone in the family – such as one of the older person’s children – is beginning to take financial advantage of things.

Exploitation in the context of personal relationships is often especially tricky for families to address. The older person may be quite attached to – or otherwise feel dependent on – the person that others perceive as suspicious or problematic. Or there may be concerns about stirring up family dramas and conflicts, by voicing concerns about a sibling or another relative.

People are often unsure of what exactly constitutes illegal activity, and what can be done if they are concerned about financial exploitation.

So in this article, I’ll cover the key things you should know, so that you can better evaluate and address a worrisome situation, should one arise.

Specifically, in this article I’ll explain: [Read more…]

Flu Shots for Older Adults During COVID Times: What to Know & Do for 2022

by Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH 150 Comments

It’s that time of the year: fall, which I think of as flu vaccination time.

I always think getting a flu vaccine is a good idea for most older adults. In these COVID pandemic times, I think it’s even more important. So I agree with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), which is urging that people get vaccinated against influenza early in the fall (before the end of October 2022).

Now, vaccination against seasonal influenza can seem like a bit of a tricky topic. Many older adults are skeptical of the need to get a yearly vaccination against influenza. They aren’t sure it will help. Or they think that the vaccination will actually give them a mild case of the flu. Or they just don’t like needles.

Or maybe they aren’t sure which type of seasonal flu shot to get: the regular one or one of the newer “stronger” versions, designed for older adults?

And now that we have COVID-19 to contend with, vaccination for seasonal influenza might feel even more confusing for people.

Don’t let yourself be confused. In this article, I will share with you what I know about influenza vaccination and what I’ve learned about influenza in COVID times. I also have updates on the new stronger flu vaccines that are now recommended for older adults.

This year, I agree with the CDC that it’s important for people to get their seasonal flu shot, and if you are an older adult, I recommend getting one of the three flu vaccines specifically recommended for older adults. (See below for more on these!)

Among other things: although we’ve had some milder flu seasons these past few years, Australia just had its worst flu season in five years and experts say we should be prepared to see more flu circulating this year.

Note: If you are age 65 or older and it’s been more than 2 months since your last COVID booster, you may be able to get your COVID fall booster shot at the same time. (For more on the new bivalent COVID booster , see COVID Vaccination & Boosters for Aging Adults: What to Know & Do.)

In “normal” pre-COVID times, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that every year, influenza affects 9-45 million Americans, causes 140,000-810,100 hospitalizations, and results in 12,000-61,000 deaths. In most years, influenza vaccination does help reduce hospitalizations and deaths (I go into details below).

And now this fall, this will be our third winter dealing with COVID-19 as well. As of September 2022, we still have 400-500 people dying of COVID every day, and my recent review of CDC data suggested that over 80% of the deaths are in people over age 65. We don’t know for sure what will happen this fall, but since COVID seems to spread more when people are indoors and in proximity to the exhalations of others, it’s certainly possible that COVID could get worse again this winter.

So this year, it’s important to do what you can to reduce respiratory illness, to protect yourself, and to protect others. And getting vaccinated against influenza is one of the things we can do.

In fact, I’m about to go get mine. As a healthy woman in her 40s, I’m not that concerned about getting dangerously ill from influenza. Instead, I get my annual flu shot because I want to minimize my chance of getting sick and perhaps exposing my older patients to influenza.

Here’s what I’ll cover in this article:

The basics of influenza and vaccination against the flu
What we know about influenza and COVID-19
What to know about flu shots for older adults & the CDC’s new recommendations specifically for older adults
What’s new and resources for the 2022-2023 flu season
Which influenza vaccination is probably best for most older adults
What to do if your older parent or relative is unwilling or unable to get vaccinated
Whether it’s more important to get a flu shot or a COVID vaccination (or a booster)

[Read more…]

5 Ways to Help Someone Age in Place

by Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH 19 Comments

People of all older ages often tell me they hope to age in place.

Meaning, they want to be able to remain in their home and community, even as time brings changes to life, health, and abilities.

These days, many older people do end up moving, often reluctantly. And this doesn’t have to be a bad thing; I find that after a period of adjustment, many aging adults enjoy their new homes and communities. But no one likes the thought that they might *have* to move, because it’s become too difficult or risky to remain in one’s preferred home.

Now, as for all things in life and health and aging, it’s impossible to guarantee the outcome we want. But, as in almost all things in life and health and aging, there’s plenty you can do to put the odds in your favor, when it comes to aging in place.

The key is to understand what often interferes with remaining in one’s home. Then you can think about how to anticipate, prevent, or work around many of those challenges to aging in place.

In this post, I’ll describe some of the common reasons that I see older adults struggling to age in place. Then I’ll share 5 specific things you can do, to help an older person better age in place. [Read more…]

How to Address Cardiovascular Risk Factors for Better Brain Health:
12 Risks to Know & 5 Things to Do

by Leslie Kernisan, MD MPH 92 Comments

cardiovascular risk factors A while back, I wrote an article on cerebral small vessel disease, a very common condition in which the small blood vessels of the brain develop signs of damage.

If you’re an older adult and you’ve had an MRI done of your brain, chances are pretty good that your scan showed signs of at least mild signs of this condition; one study of older adults aged 60-90 found that 95% of them showed signs of these changes.

These are basically like teensy strokes in the brain. Most are un-noticeable to people, but if you have enough of them, you can certainly develop symptoms, such as cognitive impairment, balance problems, or even vascular dementia.

To date, the cerebral small vessel disease article has generated over 100 comments and questions from readers. A common theme was this: “My MRI shows signs of this condition. What can I do?”

As I explain in the article and the comments, the first thing to do is to work closely with your doctors to understand what is the likely cause of the damage to the brain’s small blood vessels.

Now, when you do this, you may well find that your doctor just shrugs, or waves off the question.

That’s because in most people, cerebral small vessel disease is thought to be in large part a result of atherosclerosis (more on this term below) affecting the smaller arteries of the brain. And atherosclerosis affects just about everyone as they age, because it’s related to many basic cardiovascular risk factors that become very common in late-life.

So in many cases, asking the doctor why you have signs of cerebral small vessel disease may be like asking why you might have high blood pressure, or arthritis. These are common conditions and they are usually due to medically mundane causes and risk factors, including sub-optimal “lifestyle” behaviors and the general “wear and tear” on the body that is associated with aging.

(However, in some people, damage to the small vessels in the brain may be related to one or more particular medical conditions. Younger people, in particular, seem more likely to have a particular condition or risk factor that may be causing most of the damage.)

Whether you are younger (i.e under age 60) or older, always start by asking your doctors what they think are the most likely causes for any cerebral small vessel disease, and what they recommend you do to slow the progression.

And for most people, the main advice will be this: evaluate and address your cardiovascular risk factors.

“Vascular,” as you probably already know, means “blood vessels.” And blood vessels are critical to the function of every part of the body, because blood vessels are what brings oxygen and nutrients to every cell in the body. They also carry away waste products and toxins. So, blood vessel health is key to brain health.

This article will help you better understand how to address blood vessel health. Specifically, I’ll cover: [Read more…]

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