ArcaMax

There’s a new, bipartisan congressional effort underway to support senior legal hotlines.

Led by Reps. Derek Tran, D-Orange, and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pennsylvania, the bill establishes a competitive grant program to ensure hotlines are appropriately staffed with trained attorneys and paralegals, can provide older adults with support services,...Read more

Dear Toni:

I have decided to retire when I turn 65 in February and need to enroll in Medicare Parts A and B. My husband, Harry, is 74, and he enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B when he turned 65, remaining on my employer benefits with health issues.

His primary doctor’s office manager expressed concerns because of my husband’s intense lung...Read more

While many people will be enjoying the next few weeks surrounded by friends and family, many of our neighbors will be isolated, especially those in their senior years.

This isolation can contribute to depression and other disorders, which in turn can contribute to the rising levels of suicide or suicide attempts among the senior population.

A ...Read more

Dear Toni,

I am currently on COBRA with dental benefits. I will need dental insurance when I lose my COBRA benefits after enrolling in Medicare at 65 in March. The only dental plans I am finding are in Medicare Advantage HMO/PPO plans. The office manager of my cardiologist’s office advised me not to go in the Medicare Advantage direction ...Read more

Once you reach your 50s, it is crunch time for saving for retirement. If you set a retirement savings target but have been neglecting it, you need to dust it off for a careful review. (Working with a financial advisor can help get you back on track.)

Once you’ve reacquainted yourself with the financial destination you want to reach, take ...Read more

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When Narem Palomino Pardo isn’t studying for his master’s at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, performing with the UMKC Conservatory Wind Symphony or practicing the piano, you might find him in an unusual position: doing yoga with people nearly three times his age.

Palomino Pardo now lives at Claridge Court in ...Read more

CHICAGO -- What does retirement look like for you?

For a West Lawn resident with an electrical engineering degree, retirement entails spending a part of his week fixing electric appliances donated to Habitat for Humanity’s South Side ReStore.

For a former WBBM-Ch. 2 reporter and anchor/reporter at WMAQ-Ch. 5, retirement includes assisting ...Read more

Hi Toni:

Recently, you wrote an article explaining hospice. Please let readers of your column know that there are other ways hospice comforts the caregiver when a loved one passes. My mother’s hospice case manager and also her social worker made sure that I knew exactly what to do for her final needs when she finally peacefully passed away.

...Read more

Travel to the end of the earth—as Ushuaia, Argentina, is called. Then travel beyond it, to the islands, coves and research stations of Antarctica, a remote and mysterious land experienced by only a handful of visitors each year.

Recently, we joined 153 other adventure seekers in the relaxed luxury of Atlas Ocean Voyages’ World Voyager—the...Read more

BERLIN — People aged 50 and over can help prevent heart disease and gain years of life by having key health values checked regularly, health experts say.

A cardiovascular health check should become a regular part of preventive care no later than age 50, and preferably from 35, according to the German Heart Foundation. In the UK, meanwhile, ...Read more

Hello Toni:

In the new Medicare & You Handbook that I received about a month ago, I cannot find what the 2026 Medicare costs and premiums will be. I would like this information because I have been diagnosed with a heart condition and will need to undergo heart surgery next year. I have looked online and cannot find the costs there either.

Do ...Read more

Dear Toni,

As a certified case manager and critical care unit RN, I advise adult children who are seeking help for a parent or spouse who is having end-of-life issues. Those who have serious health care issues should be offered every option for proper planning with end-of-life care, especially hospice!

Can you explain hospice and respite care ...Read more

Toni:

I need your help! I have discovered that my mother, Sarah, who is 67, never enrolled in Medicare Part B or a Part D prescription drug plan when she turned 65. She enrolled in Medicare Part A, which doesn’t have a premium, so that she could pay her monthly bills. A friend told my mother that if she did not go to the doctor, my mother ...Read more

Hello, Toni:

You helped me sign up for a Medicare Supplement Plan G and a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan; both plans started January 2021. These two plans have served me well so far.

I just received information that my current Part D plan will no longer cover the Humira that I take twice a month as an injection for ...Read more

Dear Toni,

My husband recently fell from a ladder, shattered his hip and broke his right leg. After having emergency surgery, Jim is having a stay in a skilled nursing facility for his rehab to learn how to walk on his repaired hip.

A friend recently had a skilled nursing stay and was billed more than expected because she did not have the ...Read more