October 5, 2018 — According to the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC), the application, filed by Kansas Gas Service in June, requests a $42.7 million dollar net base rate increase. If approved, the average residential customer’s natural gas bill will increase by $5.67 per month, an increase of 10 percent. A complete copy of Kansas Gas Service’s application and supporting testimony is available on the Commission’s website. The following is testimony presented by AARP Kansas Associate State Director Andrea Bozarth before the Kansas Corporation Commission …

October 5, 2018 — Submitted by Zachary Vickers It’s a conversation many of us will be confronted with at some point, even though it’s an uncomfortable topic of discussion. How do we want to be cared for at the end of our lives? Last July, Governor Malloy signed into law the adoption of a new program known as the Medical Order for Life-Sustaining Treatment (MOLST). MOLST is a medical order form designed to provide patients, with terminal or other life-threatening conditions, greater control over …

October 1, 2018 — Three billion dollars. That’s how much older Americans are losing to abuse and financial exploitation every year, and that’s only the reported amount. At AARP, staff and volunteers alike are working hard every day to fight elder abuse and exploitation across the country. Right here in the District, AARP DC is supporting a bill introduced by Councilmember Anita Bonds that proposes the creation of an Elder Abuse Response Team (EART) in Washington, DC. The team — whose goal is to …

October 1, 2018 — With two months left of hurricane season, AARP Virgin Islands continues to share resources and tips on storm preparedness. In many ways the islands are still recovering from Hurricanes Irma and Maria, in 2017. AARP Foundation collected and donated more than $600,000 for local projects. For more information, go to aarp.org/vi. Check out a video at aarpfoundation.org/recoveryandrelief of the visit by CEO Jo Ann Jenkins and Foundation President Lisa Marsh Ryerson earlier this year to the Virgin Islands and Puerto …

October 1, 2018 — By Laura Tillman Rosamond Bradley was 73 and living on her own in 2009. She had been a teacher, church volunteer and avid traveler. But she had begun to behave erratically. After one incident—smashing windows in her home, claiming a burglar was trying to get in—Bradley was admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Eventually, a Lubbock County judge, citing Bradley’s mental illness and dementia, found that she was incapable of taking care of herself and named a son as her guardian. …

October 1, 2018 — State voters will decide Nov. 6 whether to extend health coverage to some 150,000 low-income residents by expanding Medicaid to people who exceed the current financial eligibility bar. AARP Utah has been pursuing the expansion in the legislature for several years, as the state leaves federal dollars on the table—$800 million a year—that would broaden the health coverage program. The Utah Decides Healthcare coalition, which includes AARP, helped qualify Proposition 3 for the ballot and strongly backs the measure. In …

October 1, 2018 — On Nov. 6 voters can ensure funding of health care and long-term care services that would allow thousands of people to age in their homes. Money to pay for the Healthy Montana Initiative (I-185) would be raised by taxing tobacco an additional $2 a pack. AARP Montana backs the ballot measure, and early voting has started. As federal money to expand Medicaid decreases and the state’s responsibility grows, the measure seeks funding to keep about 100,000 Montanans from losing their …

October 1, 2018 — Utility bills are an important concern for older Nevadans, especially those on fixed incomes. A Nov. 6 ballot measure threatens to inject uncertainty into the market, with the prospect of rate increases, critics say. AARP Nevada, along with a coalition of organizations and businesses, is fighting ballot Question 3, which would amend the state constitution to deregulate the electricity market. Touted as providing energy choice for Nevadans, the measure is vague and risky and opens the prospect of lengthy litigation, …

October 1, 2018 — More than 140,000 Georgians live with Alzheimer’s disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Association, and African Americans are at a greater risk of developing the condition. Learn more about how to support people with dementia and their caregivers at the workshop Understanding Dementia in the African American Community, cosponsored by SageNavigator and Faith Village Connections, on Saturday, Oct. 20. Occurring from 10 a.m. to noon at Light of the World Church International (1040 Willingham Drive in East Point), the event will …

October 1, 2018 — By Merry MacKinnon No Oregon law requires it, but Albany farmer Ben Verhoeven gives all 25 of his employees paid parental leave. “We’re a second-generation family farm and we support families,” said Verhoeven, 35, whose greenhouse, Peoria Gardens Inc., offers workers up to 12 weeks of employer-funded leave at full pay for the birth or adoption of a child. He took paid leave from his own business when his two children were born. But Verhoeven would also like to see …