Senior man and woman having coffee at table seen through window

Age Wave Takes Center Stage at Minnesota State Fair - And You’re Invited

The Future of Aging is going to take 'Center Stage' next week at the Minnesota State Fair in the Big Top Tent, and you’re invited to participate: The Minnesota Sesquicentennial Commission is holding a series of community conversations over several days next week. The discussions are called:

Minnesota, Real & Imagined: What Minnesotans Need to Know for the Next 50 Years.

Partners in the project are the Bush Foundation, Twin Cities Public Television/Minnesota Channel, and the Citizens League.Discussion moderators will include: Mary Lahammer, political reporter for Twin Cities Public Television; Lori Sturdevant, editorial writer and columnist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Peter Hutchinson, president of the Bush Foundation.

The Age Wave Discussion:

The Age Wave will be the topic of the Health and Wellness Panel on Wed., Aug. 28, which will include three 25-minute conversations (from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.) (this is based on the old Chautauqua Lyceum models in which citizens accepted a bit of education with their entertainment [or a bit of entertainment with their education]). The Age Wave discussion, the third conversation, will feature:- Kathy Bakkenist, Ecumen’s chief operating officer and senior vice president of strategy and operations- Jan Hively, Ph.D., former deputy mayor of Minneapolis and founder and advisor to the Vital Aging Network- Jim Scheibel, former mayor of St. Paul and former director of the Corporation for National and Community Service- Sean Kershaw, executive director of the Citizens League

by origineight

Democrats See Light, Put Long-Term Financing on Platform

Long-term care financing is like a long dormant volcano that is starting to fizz again.The last time long-term care financing was a serious national topic of discussion was in the late 1980s into 1990 when The Pepper Commission, a bi-partisan commission led by the late Rep. Claude Pepper (D-Fla.) made long-term care financnig part of a national health care reform blueprint. In fact, in 1990, then Presidential candidate George H.W. Bush said he’d give long-term care 'the attention it deserves.' Then … THUD.The issue is getting new life.For the first time Democrats have put long-term care financing in their draft platform 'Renewing America’s Promise' that will be approved in the upcoming convention. As first reported by Future of Aging, the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging blog, here is the draft language:Empowerment and Support of Older Americans and People with Disabilities.Seniors and people with disabilities should have access to quality affordable long-term care services, and those services should be readily available at home and in the community. Americans should not be forced to choose between getting care and living independent and productive lives.Seniors We will take steps to ensure that our seniors have meaningful long-term care options that are consistent with their individual needs, including the option of home care. We believe that we must pay caregivers a fair wage and train more nurses and health care workers so as to improve the availability and quality of long-term care. We must reform the financing of long-term care to ease the burden on seniors and their families. We will safeguard social security. We will develop new retirement plans and pension protections that will give Americans a secure, portable way to save for retirement. We will ensure a safe and dignified retirement.

Give Input on the Republican Platform

The Republicans will soon announce their platform, but you can still urge them to include long-term care financing it. Here’s how:

Visit GOP Platform 2008.
Click “create platform account.”
Create an account.
Click on “submit text entry” and enter your own version of the following platform statement:

“Any effort at health care reform must also include long-term care financing reform. The responsibility of care giving will only increase as the baby boom generation ages and needs additional services. America needs a fiscally responsible approach for long-term care financing based on the principles developed in the successful state-based Cash & Counseling programs. These principles, including a cash benefit, offer the maximum choice, independence, and personal responsibility for seniors and persons with disabilities, while ensuring fiscal integrity.”

by origineight

A Long-Term Care Financing Idea From Nebraska

We had a fabulous day last week with Nebraska State Treasurer Shane Osborn and Trent Fellers, director of their new Long-Term Care Savings Plan last week. Thanks to the many people who came to the morning event. The Minneapolis Star Tribune has an editorial on the Nebraska plan today, which we’ve posted below.After meeting with the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce health care policy committee, they for the first time in their history voted to develop a Chamber policy statement on long-term care. Treasurer Osborn did a great job of outlining that long-term care impacts us all.

Editorial: A pioneering idea from Nebraska

August 17, 2008

It’s a safe bet that neither Madonna, who turned 50 on Saturday, nor the recently-turned-65 Mick Jagger will have trouble paying for long-term care in the years ahead. For us regular folks, especially aging baby boomers, long-term care looms as an expensive necessity that many are ill-prepared to pay for.Long-term care covers a wide range of services needed by the elderly and the disabled -- everything from nursing homes to assisted living to home health aides. According to the federal government, 70 percent of people 65 and older will need long-term care at some point. It doesn’t come cheap. In Minnesota, a year’s stay in a nursing home (in a shared room) averages about $49,000. Surveys show that many in Minnesota and elsewhere plan to rely on Medicare, the nation’s health care program for seniors, to pick up the tab.The trouble is that Medicare does not pay for most of these services. While Medicaid is a last resort when an individual does not have private insurance or has exhausted life savings, that leaves taxpayers on the hook. And that’s a problem when the number of elderly is rising dramatically.Nothing short of systemic reform will solve the looming problem. But until then, creative smaller-scale policymaking can help. This week, Nebraska State Treasurer Shane Osborn flew to the Twin Cities to push one of those ideas -- one that Minnesota lawmakers should move rapidly to adopt.Osborn’s home state is pioneering a practical approach: a state-sponsored long-term care savings plan. The accounts work much like the 529 tax-advantaged college savings plans that many states already have. In this case, people save for long-term care expenses for themselves or family members. State income tax deductions -- currently up to $2,000 for couples filing jointly -- are an incentive.

Nebraska is the only state with such a plan. But Osborn, a Republican and former Navy pilot who made international headlines in 2001 when a Chinese fighter jet collided with his spy plane, hopes others will follow. He rightly concludes that the accounts could not only ease some of the financial strain on state and federal governments in years ahead, but would also raise badly needed awareness about long-term care costs. Osborn spoke at a Wednesday event sponsored by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, Citizens League, 2020 Conference and Ecumen, a senior services and housing nonprofit. Fortunately, Minnesota lawmakers know a good idea when they hear one. 'I’m sold. I would go as far as saying I would be prepared to carry this legislation next year in the senate,'' said state Sen. Geoff Michel, R-Edina.One adjustment that could make a good idea even better: raising the state income tax deduction ceiling for account holders. Osborn is pushing to raise Nebraska’s to $5,000 for couples. That’s a good target for Minnesota, too. Thinking about future long-term care needs is neither easy nor fun. Tax incentives may help more people tackle this difficult issue and prepare for the challenges ahead.

by origineight

Madonna, Prince, Mick and The Change Wave

Madonna finds her lucky star when she hits the big 50 tomorrow. Mick Jagger’s is finding lots of satisfaction at 65. And Prince got a hip replacement, so he can still get crazy and live fully after 50.This is an interesting part of the Age Wave. In the 1950s, 60s, 70s, we didn’t have the mass media that brings us every part of a person’s life. It was mass media that made people such as Madonna, Mick and Prince icons for a lifetime. They’re not going away. But what will increasingly become part of their story and other icons' story are growing into old age, hip replacements, new technologies that help them stay independent as possible, caregiving, dementia, and home care.Think of other iconic people who make news and love being news - who are growing older - Katie Couric, Cher, Bono, Howard Stern, Charles Barkley, Bill Clinton, etc. Aging is becoming part of their story. And I doubt they’re going to leave the stage quietly. For a look ahead, look back …Pre-mass media screen legend and stroke survivor Kirk Douglas sure isn’t exiting quietly. His column in this week’s Newsweek, was entitled 'What Old Age Taught Me.'The Change Wave is here … . will you ride it?

by origineight

Aging Begins When We Are Young, Financial Literacy Should Too

Most Americans think that Medicare will pay for long-term care … It won’t. In 2005 the national savings rate fell below zero percent … the first time since the Great Depression. Most people have no clue what aging services cost.Aging begins when we’re young and financial literacy should, too. That’s the premise of this Ecumen article that appeared in today’s Minneapolis Star Tribune. What are your thoughts?

Financial sense must be taught early

By Eric Schubert, Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs, Ecumen

August 9, 2008

Used to be that credit cards didn’t pad most wallets. People stayed in the same job, steadily paid off a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage, retired with a pension and, when life waned, received care from family or a nursing home bolstered by Medicare and Medicaid.Personal finance had autopilot sensibility.But individuals now hold the controls -- from 401(k)s IRAs and health savings accounts. Soon we’ll hold more controls -- of necessity.The tools of Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society -- Medicare and Medicaid -- are running tight and badly in need of retooling. There are more of us, we live longer, and we don’t want to die in a cinderblock room next to a stranger. To meet our desires amid today’s fiscal realities and unprecedented age wave, we’ll have to raise taxes, create new savings and payment options, or both.More control demands fiscal literacy for a lifetime. But we don’t teach personal finance across all schools and grades. Some say money management should be home taught. A wonderful concept, but too many parents are financially illiterate.In 2005, the national savings rate fell below 0 percent, the first time since the Great Depression. A University of Minnesota study says nearly one-third of Minnesotans age 43 to 72 are at 'very high risk' of not having enough money for retirement.A new AARP study says half of us don’t read financial information because 'it’s too hard to understand.' And, in a study of baby boomers by Ecumen, my employer, nearly one-third think Medicare will pay for long-term care. It won’t. Beyond the several-week rehabilitation benefit, you, your long-term care insurance or Medicaid pay nursing home costs.All told, financial home schooling has been a failure.

Fiscal literacy can’t just be a 12th-grade class. Learning must begin early and progress so students leave high school knowing the power of compound interest, financial pitfalls, the difference between Medicare and Medicaid, and how decisions made in their 20s will affect how they’ll live in their 90s.Curricula must be experiential and emphasize sharing. Politicians talk about how churches and nonprofits are integral to helping people. They are. But good intentions can’t fuel our work. And while we don’t pay profits to shareholders, our work requires dollars. No money, no mission.For Minnesota to come out of the age wave in sound fiscal shape, tomorrow’s adults must innately understand the interplay among saving, sharing and spending. Giving kids a nominal, pre-funded investment account that they can contribute to and manage would provide hands-on learning and perhaps go toward their college tuition or seed money for a business.Would mandated classes cost too much? They shouldn’t. Other states already do it. The Itasca Project includes a variety of materials at financiallyfitmn.org that could contribute to a state curriculum. Financial services companies could gain more substantive, top-of-mind recognition by diverting a portion of their mega-ad dollars to supporting K-12 financial literacy efforts. Regulators can ensure their support wouldn’t unduly influence curricula.Financial education works. University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin researchers found that immediately after completing a financial literacy program, almost half of the students reported increased financial knowledge. In follow-up surveys, nearly 40 percent started saving money.The nonpartisan National Bureau of Economic Research found that adults who attended high schools with state-mandated financial literacy training generally save more and accumulate more wealth than other adults. And many of those people had non-saving parents. If our young people learn and embrace fundamentals of saving, spending and sharing, they will benefit, as will Minnesota.

Poverty likely won’t be eradicated in my lifetime. Immoral wage gaps probably won’t be, either. Despite that, fiscal literacy can lead to less personal debt, more personal responsibility, preservation of safety nets and more disposable income spent and shared in our state.While it’s easier to build a child than repair an adult, we can’t give up on ourselves. We should exercise automatic enrollment in workplace retirement savings programs that have the option to automatically diversify and rebalance assets, have more workplace education on planning for big-ticket items such as senior care, and help others learn from our mistakes.A K-12 fiscal literacy curriculum is a good next step.

by origineight

All Genes or You? Take the Ecumen Poll on Aging

Can you impact how you age?We recently featured two Ecumen centenarians - Hardy Rickbeil and Marion Davidson. They live different lifestyles. For example, one is a fitness buff, one is not. We’re all different, so this raises a question below. Please take our poll. If you have any comments to add, please click on the 'comments' section below.Have a great weekend.[poll id='3']

by origineight

A New Look on Aging: Carol’s Beauty of Aging Show

Our culture hasn’t always placed the highest value on the aging process; wrinkles and grey hair seem to be things to cover up rather than take pride in.Carol Seefeldt, an artist and volunteer at the Ecumen community of Parmly LifePointes, sees aging in a different light and wanted to show others just how beautiful aging can be. Her 'Beauty of Aging' art show is a gift to those people and the community she enjoys.The exhibit at Parmly LifePointes runs through this month. The exhibit showcases photos of people we serve engaged in their everyday activities, which range from enjoying the relationships of friends to using Vitalize! Wellness Center. Carol stresses that engagement in life can be seen in the sparkle in one’s eye, in a smile, or a conversation.Thank you, Carol.

by origineight

The Gift of Parents: Looking Ahead to a Celebration

In addition to aging, another thing we all have in common is dying. Atlanta reader Susan Landis (and mother of Ecumen director of real estate developement Dana Wollschlager), who works in aging services, recently shared this story that a lot of people can relate to. Aging is all about living … even when you’re thinking about the end of life …

Susan Landis with her parents Robert and Bette Ryff.

My father is describing how he met my mother, the love of his life for over 60 years. 'The first time I saw her was at a USO dance,' he says. 'I could see her dancing with this guy. He was a terrible dancer. I thought I better save her from this guy she’s dancing with,' his New York accent coming through.My mother chimes in, 'My girlfriend and I had just moved to Seattle and I met him the first day I was there.' We met in May and were married in November.'I’ve heard this story a thousand times before. The story is not for me though; it’s for the funeral consultant we are meeting with. 'Wow,' says the consultant, 'you didn’t know each other very long before you married. You’re lucky it all worked out.''Yes,' Mom says, 'I guess staying together for 63 years could be called lucky.'Everyone laughs. Things are going better than I thought they would when I picked up my parents this afternoon for a trip to the cemetery. Let’s face it; planning your funeral is not the most pleasant way to spend a Sunday afternoon. When she gets into the car, Mom says she started to feel sick just before I got there; kind of nauseous and dizzy.'You know,' she says,' most of the time I just don’t think about it, dying I mean. You just kind of forget about it. When I felt bad just now I realized it really is going to happen someday. We are going to die.''I know what you mean.' I respond.And I do know exactly what she means. It’s so easy to just push thoughts like that to the back of your mind. After all, you don’t want to dwell on those kinds of thoughts. It would be morbid and depressing. It’s easy because we are so busy with work or family or just the everyday activities of cleaning, shopping, cooking etc. And the time just flies by. Suddenly I am 61 and my parents are in their eighties and I cannot imagine a world without these loving, generous, kind, funny people in it.I have mapquested our little journey. I’m relatively new to Georgia and our destination is over 50 miles away. Mom rides shotgun and is the navigator. She’s always been good at reading maps. I am more like my father and we are good at getting lost. Dad asks, 'What’s the first street we are looking for?'The scenery is beautiful with forested rolling hills and it is a nice enough day. 'Wow,' Mom says, 'you’ll need to pack a lunch when you come out here. It’s quite the trip.''You missed the turn,' shouts Dad. We double back. 'You know,' I say 'Andy and Dionne are always late. We will have to get them started two hours in advance just to make the funeral in time.' Now we are laughing and making 'funeral trip' jokes. 'Oh look,' I say, 'there’s a Garden Ridge Store. I say we stop and shop on the way home.'By the time we reach the funeral home and cemetery we are laughing and complimenting my Dad on his good observational skills in catching our wrong turns. For once, he has found the way.And now I am listening as my parents recount their first meeting and discuss where they want their remains to be located. My Mom’s people are buried on a hill outside of a little town called Valley City in North Dakota. My Dad’s folks are in St. Raymond’s Cemetery in the heart of New York City. Dad votes for Valley City and Mom votes for New York because it’s such an exciting place. More laughter and finally the details are worked out. On the way home we stop and Mom and I shop while Dad patiently waits.We find the perfect item for Mom’s mantle piece and head back home with out treasures. Just before we turn down the street to my parent’s home, my Mom reaches over and touches my arm. 'The next time you take this trip,' she says, 'I want you to remember how much fun we had today and how we laughed. Remember that.'My eyes well with tears, but I smile. I will remember that. I will remember that my parent’s love extended even to those difficult things in life. I will remember that they carefully planned their exit so that those of us who love them so very much will have nothing to think about on that day except all the beautiful memories of our lives with them. Thanks Mom and Dad.............

by origineight

What Random Act of Kindness Have You Seen? Share it Here.

Have you observed random acts of kindness between someone and a senior? What was it? What made you feel good about it?Last week The New York Times had a story that was one of the site’s 'most read' stories all week. It was about a woman who lives alone in New York City. She’s 101. The paper marveled at how several people who aren’t related to her have created a 'community,' by stopping by to visit, read to her, and drop off chocolate.It was a great story. There are a lot more out there, though. What is a random act of kindness that you’ve witnessed or been a part of that involved a senior and just made you feel good? . . . Please leave it here in the 'comments' section.

by origineight

The Age Wave: An Opportunity to Live Better, Longer

Below is an article by Ecumen President and CEO Kathryn Roberts, which ran in yesterday’s Saint Paul Pioneer Press:The Age Wave: An Opportunity to Live Better, LongerAbout 70 people young and old recently met for two days at the Citizens League’s offices in St. Paul to brainstorm how to improve health care, communities and the state budget. Here’s what these people had in common: All were aging and see it as transformative opportunity for the marketplace and public policy.Why is it so important for citizens, businesses, policymakers, health care providers and others to focus on aging and transformation? I answer with another question: How do you want to live?Government nursing homes have been the cornerstone of Minnesota’s long-term care system since the 1960s. Medicaid €” called Medical Assistance in Minnesota €” doesn’t cover the cost of care. An inefficient, outdated system leads to a continuous state budget battle over nickels and dimes that never catches up with costs.Those nickels and dimes nonetheless add up. Long-term care is a big, fast-growing budget item. At $1.5 billion, it has almost doubled since 2000, with $7 of every $10 going to government nursing homes rather than less expensive services such as at-home or assisted living.Minnesota is stuck in a time warp at the worst possible time: a permanent shift in the age of our state’s population.In 2011, baby boomers begin turning 65. In 2020, Minnesota’s seniors will outnumber children. The largest-growing population group is the 'old-old,' those 85 and older. And, if obesity trends don’t reverse, we’ll see more disabled young people.

Factor in the wildcard of Alzheimer’s, currently an incurable, care-intensive disease afflicting more and more people.

Absent innovation, government spending for long-term care in Minnesota could easily exceed $20 billion by 2050.We can’t change demographics. We can change how we live and pay for the privilege. We have to. A new age demands new solutions.That’s what the Citizens League workshop was about. Ideas included:

A tax-advantaged savings program for expenses from home modification to memory care.

Integration of technology that connects people with each other and delays or eliminates a nursing-home stay.

Multi-county or other local referendums, so that people can develop and fund local or regional solutions. If, for example, a county’s residents believe a senior transportation system is important, they would fund that priority.

A community 'Age Well' assessment and certification that promotes communities' lifetime livability. Communities could earn a special designation, illustrating how well they are prepared for an aging population.On Aug. 13, some Nebraska officials will come to Minnesota to share details of their Long-Term Care Savings Plan at a public event hosted by Ecumen, the Citizens League, a bi-partisan legislative group called the 2020 Conference and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce.Introduced last year, Nebraska’s plan is the first of its kind in the nation. Think of it as a 401k for aging services. Why a special aging-services savings tool? Because many people view their current retirement accounts as dollars for daily living staples or as 'fun money' rather than a fund that could pay for memory loss or home care.Nebraskans can contribute to their individual funds and receive a tax deduction. Savings and earnings are excluded from state tax until withdrawn €” as long as they’re used for long-term care services (at any age) such as technology, home modification, insurance premiums and nursing care. Funds not used can be passed to a beneficiary, making intergenerational planning and personal responsibility a much stronger part of the solution.Minnesota needs new ideas to pay for choices consumers desire, protect the state budget, preserve safety nets for those who can’t escape poverty and forge a truly coordinated cradle-to-grave health care system. We know what’s before us. It’s a big wave and an even bigger opportunity.WORKSHOPLearn more about Nebraska’s new long-term-care savings plan from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. Aug. 13 at the Wilder Center in St. Paul. Register by Aug. 6 on the Citizens League Web site: www.citizensleague.org. Or, for more information, call 651-293-0575, ext. 10. The free workshop is presented by Ecumen, the Citizens League, the 2020 Conference and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce.

by origineight

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