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New York City Has Longest Life Expectancy (January 13, 2012)
(Article in Russian)
New York City was awarded first place in the US in terms of its residents' life expectancy. The average age of Big Apple residents is roughly 2.5 years longer than the average age of the residents of other US cities. The current average life expectancy of New York women is 83 years and 78 years for men. The only disadvantage of the longevity is that many women have to grow old alone.

Issues This Week

 

Pension | Health | Elder Rights PENSION WORLD France: Retirees Do Not Want to Age in Paris (January 18, 2012) (Article in French) Stress, noise, pollution, cost of living, these are the daily inconveniences when you live in Paris. People who worked there are therefore more likely to leave the capital for the peace and quiet of the provinces. According to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies study, 50% of retirees who were born in Ile-de-France eventually leave the region in search of a better environment.  Some 12.4% of them choose the sun and the warmth of the south and settle in Provence Alpes Côte d'Azur. Mexico: Financial Aid for 70 Plus (January 18, 2012) (Article in Spanish) Mexico's president Felipe Calderon launched a new social assistance program for people aged 70 or more. It will provide economic support (500 pesos a month) for older people using ATMs. The President wants more transparency by distributing the aid through banks, instead of cash. He wants all older people, regardless of their politics, to benefit from the program. Canada: Employers Keen on Privately Managed Pension Plans, Survey Shows (January 17, 2012) Business owners believe the federal government should require companies to offer workplace pensions such as the new Pooled Registered Pension Plan being created in Canada. The new program will allow workers to set aside money through payroll deductions in a pension savings fund. It was originally started to help private sector workers in Canada who do not have a workplace pension plan to add to their personal savings for retirement. Firms will also have the choice to contribute to these funds as employers. Canada: Concerns About the Budget and the Aging of the Population (January 11, 2012) (Article in French) The Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty acknowledged in preliminary consultations about Ottawa's budget vote for 2012 that the country faces a serious demographic problem. In coming years, federal aid for older people, such as aging benefits, will experience a sharp increase in demand, especially after the retirement of baby boomers. Measures must be taken to respond to these demands; Ottawa might have to increase its retirement age to 67 years. HEALTH US Teaching Hospitals Fight Medicare Cuts (January 17, 2012) Teaching hospitals are pressuring lawmakers to reject cuts to their Medicare payments, a possibility that may become reality by March 1. Such cuts would decrease teaching hospitals' ability to provide outpatient care to vulnerable populations, and make it more challenging to train future doctors in such a specialized environment. New York City Has Longest Life Expectancy (January 13, 2012) (Article in Russian) New York City was awarded first place in the US in terms of its residents' life expectancy. The average age of Big Apple residents is roughly 2.5 years longer than the average age of the residents of other US cities. The current average life expectancy of New York women is 83, 78 for men. The only disadvantage of the longevity is that many women have to grow old alone. WORLD World: Pfizer Stops Development of 'Dimebon' Drug Against Alzheimer's (January 19, 2012) (Article in French) Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer ended tests for the drug Dimebon which it hoped would be a cure for Alzheimer's disease. Indeed, after investing $ 725 million in its development, the results which were initially promising proved to be mediocre in the last phase of experimentation. France: Retirement Homes in Distress (January 16, 2012) (Article in French) Residential facilities for dependent older people bear the brunt of the economic crisis. Due to a lack of funds and as part of austerity measures aimed at limiting public spending, there will be no  funds allocated to the construction of new homes in the next five years. Opposition to this measure is already strengthening. The Elderly and Solidarity Service of the General Council of Haute-Garonne reaffirmed the ever- increasing cost of dependency: the departmental budget, for example, has already had to be increased by 4 percent in 2012. France: Old at 64, Young til 42 (January 13, 2012) (Article in French) The Eurobarometer conducted a survey among 26,000 people to determine at what age Europeans see themselves as being old. This study is part of the European Year of Active Ageing and Intergenerational Solidarity. For European women, the onset of old age is 65 years, 62.7 for men. The French place the end of youth at age 42 years and the beginning of old age at 66 years, both levels are within the European average. However, one finds large differences within the EU, as with the Dutch who believe that old age begins at 70 years while the  Slovaks set it at 58 years. Russia: Elderly Will Be Eligible to Relax and Participate in Rehabilitation Services at National Health Centers for Free (January 11, 2012) (Article in Russian) The deputies of the State Assembly discussed the details of a regional bill to improve the social protection of older people. In 2012, a list of regional incentives for people to take advantage of a well-deserved rest will greatly expand. In particular, after an illness, seniors will be eligible to participate in the rehabilitation services at the national health centers at public expense. ELDER RIGHTS  US Age Discrimination Takes Its Toll (January 12, 2012) In a Research on Aging study, it was found that a surprising proportion of older people report that they have experienced discrimination: 63 percent! However, the most commonly cited cause was their age. What is more unfortunate is that daily discrimination is correlated with higher rates of depression and poorer self-rated health. Blacks who were separated or divorced or widowed, and those with fewer household assets had higher levels of perceived discrimination. Everyday racial discrimination may be even more difficult and painful and personally costly than previously realized. WORLD Madagascar: Federation of Senior Citizens: Open Letter to the Leaders of Madagascar (January 18, 2012) (Article in French) Federation of Senior Citizens in Madagascar FIZOMA, wrote an open letter to the authorities denouncing the marginalization of old people and reaffirming their desire to help political leaders and make use of their foresight and experience. Seniors account for more than 9% of the population of the island; their leader, Moks Razafindramiandra, deplores and has called attention to the deterioration of elders' living conditions of older people and their low status in society. France: "Seniorpreneurs" or Senior Entrepreneurship, Analysis of a New Phenomenon (January 17, 2012) (Article in French) Not only can seniors work longer and under better conditions thanks to medical advances and longer life expectancy, they also now want to own their own companies. More than 50,000 people aged 50 and above started companies in France in 2008. In 2010, 51% of older workers or job seekers were willing to take on this new challenge. The new phenomenon is facilitated by increased ease of self-entrepreneurship, allowing "seniorpreneurs" to supplement their income, to remain active after retirement, or to counter the lack of access to the labor market they must face. France: Seniors Sharing Homes: Alternative to Loneliness and High Rents (January 17, 2012) (Article in French) Here is an alternative to maintaining an older person at home or placing them in nursing homes--the two solutions traditionally considered when a decision on senior housing must be made. A new phenomenon is slowly emerging in France: sharing among the elderly. Whether for financial reasons with ever increasing rent costs, to ease isolation, or simply to avoid the nursing home, this option could be a way to cope with the risk of poverty induced by the economic crisis, and a way to counter the loneliness experienced by older people. Spain: Gang Targets Older People and Robs Them as They Leave the Bank (January 16, 2012) (Article in Spanish) In Baix Llobregat, a gang composed of eleven family members that targets older people as victims and robs them. The gang watches old people go into bank.  As they are about leave, some gang members approach them and distract the older person while another family members removes money from the victim's pocket. An old man who withdrew about 1,000 Euros was a recent victim. The police caught the gang and five of the members are already in jail. The police estimate the total loss to all victims at more than 50,000 Euros. France: "The Prime of Life": The Crucial Vote of Seniors in 2012 (January 12, 2012) (Article in French) People aged 60 and over will account for more than a third of voters in the French presidential election later this year. They will number 13 to 14 million, and their political clout in choosing the next President of the Republic is not negligible. Looking at the figures of previous elections, older persons appear likely to vote for right-wing parties but reject extremism and centrism. In addition, seniors pay close attention to the theme of "protection of the French"--yet another reason to think they will support Nicolas Sarkozy. All the candidates should have an interest in attracting the attention of this segment of the population. Australia: Cut Tax Breaks for Seniors to Keep Surplus, Says ACOSS (January 12, 2012) The Australian Council of Social Service believes the tax breaks for older Australians should be discarded to help fund important social and economic reforms without disrupting the promised budget surplus. Chief executive of ACOSS, Tessa Boyd-Caine, considers a sustained attack on wasteful expenditure and tax breaks to be essential when attempting to solve the tension between resources and need.  And what happens to the older people?  Russia: Buranovskie Grandmothers Working for Soup (October 31, 2011) (Article in Russian) An elderly female folk group from Buransk called Buranovskie Grandmothers has taken the country by storm. It is hard to believe that the all-female ensemble was formed only a few years ago when the local grandmas decided to raise money to rebuild a local church. Fast forward to today, and the “grandmothers” not only came close to winning the most prestigious European song contest “Euro Vision 2010” but are now the opening act for many A-list celebrities, have their own nationwide tours and even perform shows for sold-out audiences in the Kremlin.

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