From the U.S. News & World Report website
In March 2018, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that by 2030, all baby boomers will be over the age of 65, leading to a unique situation in demographics: 20 percent of U.S. residents will be retirement age. This is in part because life expectancy has increased. The Population Reference Bureau reports that “average U.S. life expectancy increased from 68 years in 1950 to 79 years in 2013, in large part due to the reduction in mortality at older ages.”
As health care has improved and life expectancies have extended, more people are living longer after they would traditionally have stopped working. This has led to a potential crisis for many Americans: how to pay for the typically increased amount of health care and assistance needed as the years march onward. It’s like an absurdist word problem in sixth grade math class: If you retire at 65 and need to enter an assisted living facility 10 years later, how much money will you need to pay for the impossible-to-predict level of potentially very expensive health care you’ll need over what could be a similarly hard-to-estimate 10- to 30-year or longer timeline?
Valsartan is used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure. It is also used to improve the chance of living longer after a heart attack. In people with heart failure, it may also lower the chance of having to go to the hospital for heart failure. Valsartan belongs to a class of drugs called angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs). It works by relaxing blood vessels so that blood can flow more easily. Lowering high blood pressure helps prevent strokes, heart attacks, and kidney problems.
Earlier Retiree News post:
FDA Recalls Common Heart Drug Over Cancer Concerns
Although this recall started in August of this year, several medical websites are reposting articles about Valsartan. Be sure to check your prescription drugs or check with your pharmacist.
Andrew Richard Hara posted this video – 100 Days : 2018 Kilauea Eruption – on Vimeo.
Some 27,000 photos and video later, taking some time to reflect on documenting this year’s eruption has truly helped to process a lot of the intense range of emotions felt throughout 100 days of volcanic photojournalism. It is difficult to describe how it felt like to be led by something beyond the forces of our human existence. It was the unseen that kept all of us safe when approaching harm’s way. I believe it was the same unseen presence that brought our community together in a way that would have never bonded had it not been for something so incredibly destructive. This short documentary captures the first hour of Day 1, till my last remaining overflights on Day 100, observing massive geological change.
Continue reading and watch his video
Retiree News discovered this video when Jeff Hickman posted it on his personal Facebook page.
From the U.S. News & World Report website
Canadian seniors are generally more satisfied with their lives than those in younger age groups. Older Canadians are especially appreciative of their safety, the quality of their local environment and their personal relationships, but are generally less satisfied with their health, according to a Statistics Canada report.
However, life satisfaction among Canadians also varies by metro area and ranges from 7.8 out of 10 in Vancouver, Toronto and Windsor, to 8.2 in St. John’s, Trois-Rivières and Saguenay, according to a Statistics Canada analysis of Canadian Community Health Survey and General Social Survey data about average life satisfaction from 2009 to 2013.
Here’s where Canadians are the most likely to be satisfied with their current lifestyle.
The best way to keep the flu at bay is prevention. Make sure you and your family members use your TRICARE benefit and get a flu shot. You can also adopt good practices to avoid the spread of germs. Flu viruses are serious, contagious viruses that can lead to hospitalization or even death. To combat the flu, take these three actions:
Flower power on this @Aloha_Airlines 737. pic.twitter.com/7umXNKWuum
— Hawaii Aviation (@HawaiiAviation) November 10, 2018
Aloha flew Boeing 737s with flower design from the early 1980s
From the U.S. News & World Report website
It starts out slowly, almost imperceptibly. The misplaced keys. The forgotten birthday or anniversary. Using the wrong word or losing the thread in mid-conversation. These are often dismissed as typical signs of aging, but in some people, they may be the earliest signs that something bigger is at work – the development of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
When a doctor diagnoses dementia or Alzheimer’s in your loved one, you should be sure to ask a lot of questions to make sure you understand your loved one’s current state of being and so you can appropriately prepare for how this progressive disease could change over time.
From the National Guard magazine website
US Army photograph | click to enlarge
Soldiers will soon be wearing the uniform worn by America’s “Greatest Generation.” But not real soon.
The Army announced Sunday on its website that it will adopt the “Army Greens” as its new service uniform. Army leaders have been displaying modern prototypes of the historic uniform at public events for more than a year.
The current blue Army Service Uniform (ASU) will return to being a formal dress uniform, while the new Greens will become the everyday business-wear uniform for all soldiers, the website post said. The Army Combat Uniform―known as the Operational Camouflage Pattern―will remain the Army’s field uniform.
Hawaii National Guard photograph | click to enlarge
Hurricane Iniki devastated the Island of Kauai on September 11, 1992. The Hawaii National Guard responded with a activation to support the people of Kauai. This photograph shows then-Col Michael “Boss” Tice briefing Governor John Waihee at the Kauai Airport on the recovery operations.
Earlier Retiree News posts about Hurricane Iniki
Check Six: Hurricane Iniki – 25 years ago
Check Six: Hurricane Iniki
My Back Pages: Hurricane Iniki
Check Six: Hurricane Iniki Recovery – 26 years ago
Think you are off the hook for your annual required minimum distributions if you pass away? Think again. Death does not excuse you from taking RMDs from retirement accounts, says Uncle Sam.
If you have been taking RMDs every year but haven’t taken your annual RMD before you die, that money must still come out of the account.
Not long ago, when I interviewed one of the leading experts on “sitting disease” — the buzzy catch phrase that’s been attached to physical inactivity for the past few years — he walked in place on his treadmill desk while we chatted by phone. The irony wasn’t lost on me: I was sitting idly at my desk while writing an article about the health problems associated with sitting idly at desks. Meanwhile, the expert in the know was staying active, even though he had a desk job.
Retiree News photograph | click to enlarge
This photograph was taken on December 5, 2006 on the occasion of Governor Linda Lingle’s second inauguration. The ceremony was at the State Capitol rotunda.
In the photograph are Franklin Ho, Darryl Bactad, Gary Hema, Norton Molina. Frank and Darryl were sergeants, Gary was the First Sergeant and Norton was the Kapena Moku (captain).
The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs’ Insurance Division is responsible for overseeing the insurance industry in the State of Hawaii, which includes insurance companies, insurance agents, self-insurers and captives.
The division ensures that consumers are provided with insurance services meeting acceptable standards of quality, equity and dependability at fair rates by establishing and enforcing appropriate service standards. Administration of Chapters 431, 431K, 431M, 432, 432D, 432E, 435C and 435E, HRS, which provide for the licensing, supervision and regulation of all insurance transactions in the State. Administration of Chapter 488, HRS, Legal Service Plans also falls within the division duties.
The Insurance Division is organized, under the direction of the Insurance Commissioner and assisted by the Chief Deputy Insurance Commissioner, into seven branches:
Financial Surveillance and Examination Branch
Compliance and Enforcement Branch
Rate and Policy Analysis Branch
Insurance Fraud Investigation Branch
The functions of the Division are supported by an Office Services section, several staff positions, the Joint Underwriting Plan Bureau and the Joint Underwriting Plan Board of Governors. The seven branches closely interact with each other in attaining the common goal of safeguarding the public interest by monitoring the insurance company activities to ensure that acceptable standards are maintained and by fairly administering the Insurance Code.
Check out the Insurance Division information papers and website links for various insurance topics.
If you have any questions, please contact the Insurance Division at (808) 586-2790 or insurance@dcca.hawaii.gov.
From the U.S. News & World Report website
In American today, neck and back pain can seem as typical as the common cold. And once you’ve reached adulthood, you’re likely to experience some bouts with it at multiple times throughout your life. A quick Internet search will reveal the seemingly countless ways you can deal with this pain, from potions and lotions to various devices and contraptions. But the truth is, most back pain episodes will resolve on their own with little intervention required on your part. That can be tough to tolerate in a fast-paced world that allows for little downtime. A few days of dealing with back pain can genuinely feel like a lifetime to some people.
Further complicating the matter is this fact: Some of those neck and back pain episodes may be signaling more than just your average strain or ache. But how do you know?
Here are some signs that a visit to your doctor is in order.
