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Congress is making its end-of-year legislative sprint, with hot-button health care legislation stuck behind critical must-pass spending bills before a government shutdown. But lawmakers often push shutdowns off with temporary all-inclusive spending bills as they are likely to do this time, as they try to get out of town for the late December winter holidays. Even if the spending bills get approved individually or together in one big temporary bill, the must-do list leaves lawmakers roughly 40 days in which both chambers will be in session...
“Age Smart – Let’s Talk”, the series of forums sponsored by AARP Alaska, Older Persons Action Group and the Anchorage Senior Activity Center, returns Oct. 8, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Anchorage Senior Activity Center. This month’s focus is on caregivers. The vast majority of older Alaskans want to live independently at home. Most seniors who receive assistance at home rely exclusively on unpaid family caregivers for help. Annually, more than 128,000 family caregivers in Alaska help their loved ones to live independently – keeping them out of...
You are invited to submit a proposal to present at the National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA)’s 2020 American Indian Aging Conference. The conference will be held August 17-21, 2020 in Reno, Nevada at the Nugget Resort & Casino (1100 Nugget Avenue, Sparks, NV 89431). The theme for NICOA’s 2020 conference is “Resilience for Tomorrow… Together.” Additionally, 2020 will be a major election year and NICOA’s conference will offer the opportunity to elevate issues in American Indian politics and legislation. The conference will also focus on is...
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” So wrote Ben Franklin to a colleague in 1789. Franklin was 83 at the time. Had he lived in some Alaskan communities a couple hundred years later, some taxes would not have been so “certain,” as many give seniors a break by exempting them from having to pay certain sales taxes. The information in this article regarding senior exemptions for local sales taxes in selected Alaska locations is summarized and may lack certain important details. Contacts have been provide...
In July, the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association, Inc. (APIA) hosted the Third Annual Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) Appreciation Luncheon. With a cohort of more than 80 volunteers ranging from ages 55 to 90, these volunteers contribute their lifetime acquired skills, knowledge and service to the communities of Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. As part of the national Senior Corps group through the Corporation for National and Community Service, APIA has 17 partner...
What an amazing summer we have had! Now the weather has turned cooler and autumn is definitely in the air. As we plunge into all of the activities of this season, it is important to remember the Part D Open Enrollment Period (OEP) will soon be here. Once again, the Open Enrollment Period will be scheduled between October 15 and December 7. The Part D Open Enrollment Period is the annual opportunity for Medicare beneficiaries with Part D plans to review and possibly change their coverage. You...
Alaska Health Fair’s fall season is rocking and rolling! Find the location most convenient to you and attend -- all events have free entry and are open to the public, featuring free health screenings, plus lots of free health and safety education for all ages. These tests can help you learn about your overall health and detect potential problems early, when treatment or changes in personal habits can be most effective. Blood tests are for those over 18 years of age. The fairs’ most popular test is the Chemistry/Hematology Profile (the only test...
The Alaska State Association for Guardianship and Advocacy (ASAGA) will present a workshop on how to detect and successfully address elder abuse at a half-day event Oct. 4 in Anchorage. “Forgotten Victims No More: Elder Abuse in Alaska,” will feature recently retired prosecutor Paul Greenwood, who will draw upon his 22 years of prosecuting serious felony elder abuse crimes to demonstrate how success in the courtroom can only be achieved through a teamwork approach. Greenwood will provide examples of effective collaborative efforts and the imp...
Microneedle patches in development Researchers now have come up with a skin patch that could potentially painlessly deliver vaccines and cancer medications in one minute. Nearly 100,000 new cases of melanoma are diagnosed annually, and 20 Americans die every day from it. Now, researchers have developed a skin patch that efficiently delivers medication within one minute to attack melanoma cells. The device, which has been tested in mice and human skin samples, could be adapted to deliver a host...
The Kenai Peninsula Family Caregiver Support Program will hold the following peer support meetings in October. This month’s meetings will include discussion on how to take vital signs during caregiving – temperature, blood pressure, respiration, pain assessment. Please join to share your experiences as a caregiver or to support someone who is a caregiver. Oct. 1, Caregiver support meeting at Sterling Senior Center, 1 p.m. Oct. 8, Caregiver support meeting at Soldotna Senior Center, 1 p.m. Oct. 15, Caregiver support meeting at Kenai Senior Cen...
Vicodin and Lortab are two brand names of one of the most popular drugs in the entire world. Generically, it is called "hydrocodone with apap" where the "apap" is an abbreviation for acetaminophen (aka Tylenol). When I worked in a busy retail pharmacy in Florida, this medication was on the fast-mover shelf because it was dispensed by the thousands each day. Hydrocodone/apap is a prescription analgesic and in the category of "opioids" which you've been hearing a lot about lately. Opioids are man-...
During my senior year at Glennallen High School, my husband-to-be, Gary, was hired by Woodruff Construction, who had the contract to build an addition to the high school end of the K-12 building. After our wedding the end of the school year in May, 1973, we moved to Anchorage where Gary continued to work for Woodruff. Through Woodruff, he was hired by Mercer Construction to be part of the crew which would do remodel work at the King Salmon Air Force Base. Gary was excited at the opportunity to t...
Celebrate the critical importance and diversity of our Alaska Native languages at the First Alaskans Institute 36th Annual Elders & Youth Conference, Oct. 13-16 at the Carlson Center in Fairbanks. This year’s theme, “Qaneryararput Yugtun Piniqerput” (Yup’ik) and “Qaneryararput Cugtun Kayuqerput” (Cup’ik) loosely translates into English as “Language is Our Superpower.” As indigenous peoples alive today, we get to be part of the generation who keep the fires of our languages alive, and that makes us stronger. Elders & Youth starts with a War...
One hundred and fifty-two years ago, a ceremony held in Sitka transferred Alaska from Russia to the United States. The agreed-upon purchase price of $7.2 million had been paid earlier in the year. It didn't take long after the American flag replaced the Russian flag on Oct. 18 for conspiracy theorists to start speculating that America had not paid that full amount for what some called "Seward's Icebox." Many people thought that the United States government was involved in a cover-up that...
Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó was a veteran of over 170 stage plays and several silent films in his native Hungary when forced to flee to Germany in 1919 for political reasons. Known under the stage name Arisztid Olt, the 6' 1" actor with piercing blue eyes re-branded himself after his hometown of Lugos and appeared in a dozen German films billed as Bela Lugosi before moving to the United States in 1920. A decade later and approaching 50, Bela Lugosi's name would become forever etched in Ho...
Dear Savvy Senior: Where can I find out about alternative transportation services for my 80-year-old mother? It's time that she gives up driving, but before she does, we need to figure out how she'll get around. - Inquiring Son Dear Inquiring: Alternative transportation options for seniors who no longer drive vary widely by community, so what's available to your mom will depend on where she lives. Here's what you should know. While most urban areas offer seniors a variety of alternative...
I have long been a fan of Robin Williams. From the first time I saw him, in "Mork and Mindy," to his wacky comedy routines on stage, to hilarious movies like "Mrs. Doubtfire" and "Good Morning, Vietnam," to sensitive performances such as "The World According to Garp" and "Good Will Hunting," Robin never failed to deliver. And along with most of the world, I was shocked and saddened when, five years ago, he took his own life after being diagnosed with Lewy Body Disease. In terms of his estate...
Q. What is a password manager and how does it work? A. Password managers are apps that use a master password to protect confidential information. They enable users to securely store more information than can be memorized. The two common configurations of password managers are device-based and cloud-based. Device-based managers keep data on a single device, while cloud-based managers keep data on multiple devices and share the data among them. Keeping passwords on a single device is simpler, but functionality is limited. Keeping passwords in...
Civil War buffs Tom and Elaine Preston wander through reconstructed forts where a major battle of that conflict was fought. Betsy and Andy Cross follow a guide slogging through a dense rainforest. Lauren Davis and Jim Goodman enjoy an exciting Go-Kart track and exhilarating water slide. As inviting as these disparate experiences are, they have something in common. All take place during cruises that appeal to people who are seeking something a bit different. The Prestons are passengers on an...
Alaskans travel for pleasure and often for the necessity of seeing far-flung family, and so jet lag is our constant companion. But a recent study from the Sleep Cycle Institute in Gothenburg, Sweden, looked at more than 1.5 million nights’ worth of sleep data from people who traveled east, meaning forward in time, to the west, or backward in time, and without traversing any time zones (the control group) to take a look at how travel interferes with our sleep. Traveling east turns out to have the worst effect on sleep, according to the study, b...
Interested in learning more about businesses and agencies providing senior services in the Anchorage and Mat-Su area? Want to get the word out about your own service? The monthly Service Providers Breakfast (formerly known as the Interagency Breakfast), sponsored by Older Persons Action Group, Inc., is an opportunity for all the above. Informal, early and free, with breakfast provided. The October meeting is Oct. 9, hosted by Providence Hospice at the Thomas Center for Senior Leadership. Begins at 8 a.m. RSVP by calling Older Persons Action...
