Retirement Living News

August 2008

HEADLINES  (Click on headline to read story)

• Social Security Administration Unveils New Home Page 
  and Retirement Estimator
• Erickson Foundation Opens Retreat/Conference Center
• States Moving to Certify Senior Guardians
• FDA Approves Intel Device for In-home Monitoring of 
  Chronically Ill Patients
• Louisiana Adds to its Certified Retirement Communities List
• Texas Adds New City and Counties to its Certified Retirement Community Program

Archive of Past Issues                          New Retirement Communities

NEWS STORIES

Social Security Administration Unveils New Home Page
and Retirement Estimator 

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, unveiled last month a new online calculator at www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator that will provide immediate and personalized benefit estimates to help people plan for their retirement. The Retirement Estimator is tied to a person's actual Social Security earnings record and eliminates the need to manually key in years of earnings information.

"Deciding when to retire is one of the most important and difficult decisions many people face," Commissioner Astrue said. "The Retirement Estimator greatly improves the information available when trying to decide the right time to retire. It is simple, easy-to-use and will provide highly accurate benefit estimates for those nearing retirement age. For younger workers, it will provide valuable information to help them plan and save for their retirement." 

The Retirement Estimator is interactive allowing the user to compare different retirement options. For example, a person can change retirement dates or expected future earnings. Individuals also can print out up to three different scenarios at one time, in addition to information about their benefits at age 62 (current age if older), full retirement age and age 70. 

The Retirement Estimator is secure. The only thing it provides online is retirement benefit estimates. It does not show the earnings record information on which the final benefit estimate was calculated, nor does it reveal other personal information.

The SSA also unveiled a new home page at www.socialsecurity.gov that reduces visual clutter and is easier to navigate. In the fall, the agency will introduce its next initiative: a total overhaul of its online retirement application that will reduce the average filing time from 45 minutes to about 15 minutes. These initiatives are designed to help the agency better handle the baby boomer wave and make it easier for the public to do business with them online.                                                                                  Top

Erickson Foundation Opens Retreat/Conference Center

The Erickson Foundation, created by John Erickson, chairman and CEO of Erickson Retirement Communities, purchased Point Lookout resort and conference center in Northport, Maine, late last year and now plans to offer programs to assist seniors planning the next phase of their life. It will be a venue where people who are recently or soon to be retired can prepare for the next phase of their life and explore their options. Programs will include everything from wellness assessments to post-retirement career planning. 

Point Lookout will also be a place where companies and non-profits (particularly those that serve older adults) can explore strategies for improving the lives of seniors. In addition the facility will serve as a satellite campus for The Erickson School (at University of Maryland, Baltimore County), a resource for other schools and institutions that educate professionals in the field of aging. 

Point Lookout is an important part of John Erickson's desire to change the face of senior living in America and improve the quality of life in the freedom years. It will be a national destination and resource center for the advancement of positive aging in this country. Plans call for giving visitors a physical, psychological and avocational assessment, then provide them with feedback on what their next horizon might be. 

The facility, set on nearly 380 acres, offers upscale accommodations, state-of-the-art conference facilities, as well as athletic facilities. It features a fitness center and gymnasium, a bowling alley and 106 guest cabins, all set against the backdrop of Ducktrap Mountain and Penobscot Bay. 

The Erickson Foundation's Point Lookout had an official grand opening last month. For more information, call 800-515-3611. To view the facilities go to: http://www.visitpointlookout.com/
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State Moving to Certify Senior Guardians

With a population that is growing older and as families scatter across the country, the frail elderly are increasingly ending up with strangers watching over their personal affairs. State probate courts appoint guardians when family and friends are not available. They are called upon to look after the finances, medical care and legal issues -- making decisions the person would normally make for themselves. 

Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada, Texas and Washington all now regulate senior guardians according to Stateline.org, a nonprofit, nonpartisan online news site that practices journalism in the public interest. Several other states are considering revising their laws for court-appointed guardians to include state oversight of guardian duties. Voluntary professional certification is available through the Center for Guardianship Certification and some states rely on its examination as a licensure requirement. 

Idaho and North Carolina have legislative committees that are looking into industry regulation. Policy makers in Colorado, New Mexico, Oregon and Utah are revising their guardianship laws and may include some form of certification and oversight.

By requiring guardian training, licensing and regular audits, states aim to curb the kind of malfeasance and incompetence that already has cost many seniors their life savings and caused emotional suffering and physical harm.

Arizona has licensed more the 300 fiduciaries, Florida has 137 certified guardians, Texas has certified 241, Nevada 86, Alaska has 49 that are licensed and California has tested 161 conservators for licensing. The Center for Guardianship Certification has certified 1,468, including people from states that do not oversee the profession.                                                                                                                                                                                     Top

FDA Approves Intel Device for In-home Monitoring 
of Chronically Ill Patients

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given its approval for Intel to market their new in-home monitoring system, Health Guide, which allows health care professionals to treat their patients online. 

The Health Guide system is first being marketed to those with chronic illnesses. The system will involve patients having an in-home device and provides access online for healthcare providers to monitor and treat patients. This technology allows for more flexible evaluation times and avoiding many visits to the doctor's office. The system can connect to blood pressure machines, glucose meters, pulse oximeters, peak flow meters, and weight scales. 

The information collected is stored and once transferred to a secure FTP site, it can be studied by health care professionals via a touch screen, at their convenience. Intel's initial target marketing will be focused on insurance companies, governments, and health care providers. The company is continuing its research on the new system via pilot studies. 

Louis Burns, vice president and general manager of Intel's Digital Health Group, points out that the process allows for patients to have a more active role in their medical treatment which patients seem to enjoy. The product is important, says Burns, because it will help to reduce health care costs around the world. He added that more people are living with chronic diseases and the market is going to continue to decentralize and move from hospital care to more home care. 

Heart patients currently have remote monitoring system options through St. Jude Medical, Inc., or Medtronic, Inc. Intel feels their system will complement the already offered online heart monitoring systems, rather than be in competition. The company hopes to have the system available by the end of 2008 or early 2009, in both the U.S. and U.K.
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Louisiana Adds to its certified Retirement Communities List

Four parishes along the Interstate 12 corridor and 10 other cities and parishes have been designated Louisiana's "certified retirement communities," entitling them to $20,000 from the state to lure potential retirees, Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu announced last month. 

The parishes or cities that get the state money must match it with $10,000, Landrieu said. The four parishes in the I-12 Retirement District are St. Tammany, Washington, Tangipahoa and St. Helena, Landrieu said. 

The other locales that have each been awarded grants, to be matched by a local allocation, are: Bossier City, Crowley, Covington, Lake Charles, New Iberia, Thibodaux, Natchitoches Parish, St. Landry Parish, Union Parish and Vernon Parish. 

Crowley, Covington, Lake Charles, Thibodaux, St. Landry and Natchitoches parishes are in the program for a second consecutive year, but the others are new. The money awarded to the communities will be used in planning and marketing programs as well as advertising campaigns geared toward retirees or those contemplating retirement 

"Baby Boomers are looking for a place that offers a reasonable cost of living, mild climate, friendly people and fun things to see and do," Landrieu said. "Louisiana offers all that plus incredible beauty, unique culture and a wealth of recreational options." He also said the first step Louisiana has to take is retaining retirees, especially in military communities like Bossier and Caddo parishes, home to Barksdale Air Force Base, and Vernon Parish, where Fort Polk is located. 

The grants were awarded based on competition. Some of the factors considered included access to good health care and hospitals, birding or nature trails, golf courses, a relatively low cost of living, state parks, local fairs and festivals and other amenities.
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Texas Adds New City and Counties to its Certified 
Retirement Community Program

The Texas Department of Agriculture's GO TEXAS Certified Retirement Community program has added the city of Pittsburg, and the counties of Panola and Franklin to its list of certified retirement communities, bringing the total to 15.

Launched in June 2006, the Texas Department of Agriculture's CRC initiative helps rural Texas communities attract retirees and potential retirees to reside in their respective locales. The CRC program also encourages tourism while promoting the state as a desirable retirement destination to current and future retirees across the country. 

Texas is the second most popular retirement state in the country, according to Linda Parker, rural economic development adviser for the Texas Department of Agriculture. The Texas economy currently reaps $751 million annually from older people who migrate to Texas. They spend an average of $36,000 a year and pay $3,000 in state and local taxes. 

The communities now certified are: Athens, Clifton, Cuero, Duncanville, Franklin County, Harlingen, Longview, Lufkin, Nacogdoches County, Panola County, Pittsburg, San Augustine County, Shelby County, Texarkana, and Winnsboro as GO TEXAN Certified Retirement Communities. For more information, visit the Web site at: http://www.retireintexas.org/.
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