Author: Anonymous
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Going South
I was 68 and long since retired when I had the pleasure of being an “accompanying spouse” on a junket to a Caribbean island where my wife was attending a business conference. During her meetings I whiled away the time on the beach and simply fell in love with the climate. It was reliably sunny…
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On Aging and Writing a Hard Book
I recently finished a biography of Bertrand Russell, a major 20th century British philosopher who, as his career moved along, shifted heavily toward personal involvement in international political and cultural affairs, most notably arms control and nuclear weapon reduction—but meanwhile, as a kind of relaxation, continuing to turn out a stream of philosophy books. He…
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Update on LTCI in Massachusetts: Law Passed, Implementation Stalled
The Affordable Care Act has been front-page news from well before its passage in 2010 up through its present turbulent phase of getting up and running. Questions, concerns, and controversies have abounded and continue to do so. What impact will it have on benefits? On premiums? On cost to the taxpayer? Similar questions are commonplace…
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Aging Well
My mother will turn 88 in a few weeks. According to the definition of successful aging put forward by Rowe and Kahn nearly 16 years ago, she is aging quite well. Her kidneys, lungs, and heart work fine. She is still very active—she teaches a French class once a week at the local senior center,…
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Surrender at the End of Life
First, the problem “Do not go gentle into that good night… Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” So wrote the Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas. Working intensively over the past seven years in end-of-life care, I have often seen this attitude as a response by good people to the bad things that are happening…
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Proust on Treating Chronic Illness
The need to control health care cost is a central challenge for health and economic policy. Other than the high prices we pay in the U.S., chronic illness is a main driver of cost escalation, especially for Medicare. Seventy-six percent of Medicare spending is on patients with five or more chronic diseases, including heart disease, metabolic syndrome,…
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An Over 65er Gives Thanks
This is a Thanksgiving for which I am particularly grateful. Why? Here are some of the reasons. I give thanks for. . .
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Lucretius and Philip Larkin Talk about Death
I hadn’t read Philip Larkin’s stunning poem Aubade until Sissela Bok quoted it in her post about Seamus Heaney. I found Larkin’s evocation of the fear of death especially chilling. What terrifies him is a vision of nothingness, not any belief in an afterlife of torment:
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Suicide among the Elderly
In terms of cost savings, suicide among the elderly would be quite effective. Perhaps “suicide panels” would be as successful as the imaginary ”death panels” that caused so much consternation as healthcare reform was being processed. A ready-made theme song for “suicide panels” could be “Suicide is Painless“, the theme song from the hit TV…
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The Medicare Social Club
Days from her 80th birthday, “Nancy” (not her real name) is doing well. She’s active, exercises, drives, travels, and lives alone in a multi-story apartment building without an elevator. Her busy schedule of weekly activities includes several appointments with physicians. Nancy’s medical needs are covered by Medicare. Nancy’s been in psychotherapy for a half-century. She’s…