Older Americans have a number of strategies at their disposal to avoid social isolation, reports Forbes . One approach is for seniors to interact meaningfully with younger people, and the Silvernest home sharing platform recently announced a partnership with two Americorps programs, Teach for America in Denver and City Year in Miami. Homeowners in those cities connect through Silvernest with young educators to provide them with rooms in their homes. The educators enjoy affordable rent, guidance in navigating new cities, and an experienced friend. Homeowners in return receive a source of income, mentoring and friendship opportunities, and help in the house. Meanwhile, the Little Steps Community Daycare center in rural Georgia serves local children, parents, and senior volunteers. The free daycare program recruits senior volunteers who live nearby to staff the community center along with professionals. The senior volunteers find connection and purpose caring for the children.

Researchers from the University of California at San Francisco found that LGBTQ Americans were 29 percent more likely to report memory loss and confusion than straight, cisgender citizens, according to NPR . The study, which was presented at the recent Alzheimer's Association International Conference, consisted of a phone-based survey across nine states polling more than 44,000 Americans aged at least 45. About 3 percent of respondents indicated they are in the LGBTQ community. The researchers found that one in seven LGBTQ respondents reported worsening confusion or memory loss over the past year, as compared to one in ten of the straight, cisgender respondents. The researchers also discovered that the LGBTQ respondents reported higher difficulty levels in achieving household tasks than their straight, cisgender counterparts. The study's lead author suggested that these trends may be caused by higher rates of depression, anxiety, and stress among members of the LGBTQ community. Data suggests that roughly 350,000 LGBTQ adults in the United States are currently living with dementia or Alzheimer's.

According to the results of a new study, 52 percent of Americans over the age of 65 are willing to pay higher monthly Medicare premiums if it means there is a cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs, reports Insurance News Net . The study, which was commissioned by the Alliance for Aging Research, polled 2,203 older adults with health insurance. Within that group, 1,701 respondents had a chronic medical condition. "Of those who deal with a chronic condition, nearly one in four (24 percent) report they have stopped taking a prescription medication because of the cost," said Susan Peschin, MHS, President and CEO of the Alliance for Aging Research. Peschin said that the survey results clearly demonstrate that older adults broadly support congressional legislation that would limit out-of-pocket prescription drug payments in Medicare Part D. The study also found that there is greater support among older adults for a monthly cap than for an annual cap.

The Trump administration this week partially rolled backed an Obama-era policy on banning binding accords that prohibit nursing community residents from suing their care places over cases of neglect or abuse, reports Politico Pro . A final rule from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) makes clear that long-term care communities may ask residents or their families to agree — prior to a dispute arising — to settle complaints through arbitration instead of litigation. However, in a major change from the original CMS proposal, the final rule will not allow nursing communities to require residents to sign a binding arbitration agreement as a condition of admission. In addition, the rule includes some measures aimed at making arbitration more transparent, most notably ensuring the agreement is explained to residents in a manner they can understand. The agency, though, declined to include proposals that the policy on binding arbitration be posted in visible areas and written in plain language. Separately, the CMS on Tuesday proposed a rule aimed at reducing paperwork for long-term care providers by eliminating "obsolete or excessively burdensome regulations." This includes allowing for the streamlining of some compliance programs.

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson has approved a law waiving the jury duty requirement for people older than 75, reports KCTV5 . "The people who are in poor health or have difficulty sitting for long periods of time, difficulty with stairs, things like that, they might have already been excused," says attorney Tracy Spradlin. "So it might not actually be that much of a difference from what we're seeing now." A candidate juror may presently be excused if they have sat on a jury in the past three years, are a nursing mother, cannot leave work for public safety reasons, or have extenuating health or financial circumstances. "It's important that they still realize we want them serving on juries," Spradlin notes. "We want those viewpoints and we need people with life experience serving on juries so that they can help some other people on the jury, who might be younger, make those connections and see those other viewpoints."

Guidant Financial and LendingClub's latest Small Business Trends survey found most franchised business owners are older than 50, reports PRNewswire . "These are hardworking people who have spent 20-plus years in corporate America leading teams, departments, and business units — and are now ready to put that experience to work in their own small business," said Guidant Financial CEO David Nilssen. The survey found 62 percent of franchises are owned by baby boomers, with 30 owned by Gen Xers and 8 percent owned by millennials. In terms of happiness as business owners, franchise owners averaged an 8 on a 1 to 10 scale. They also skew toward a higher level of education than the average small business owner.

Scientists at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference announced Tuesday that their research may shed light on why women are more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease than men, reports USA Today . Two-thirds of people with Alzheimer's in the United States are women, and women are more likely to develop Alzheimer's than men at all ages. The researchers identified several sex-specific genes found in females that may be related to greater risk for Alzheimer's — biological clues that may influence how the brain disease progresses in women. Their research also suggested that Alzheimer's may spread differently in women's brains than men's brains.

Dementia Society of America (DSA) founder and President Kevin Jameson recently announced that the organization will begin accepting cryptocurrency donations, reports CoinGeek . The DSA is partnering with The Giving Block to accept cryptocurrency in an aim to "engage the community, thereby expanding our reach," according to Jameson. The Giving Block works with nonprofits to teach them about cryptocurrencies and offer strategic advice on how they should be used. The DSA will accept donations of Bitcoin, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and USD Coin, and it has pledged not to touch 51 percent of its cryptocurrency donations for the next six months. The organization also said it believes blockchain technology can be used to improve the lives of older adults with dementia and their caregivers.

A study in Clinical Infectious Diseases suggested older adults who delay influenza vaccinations until Oct. 1 may be at a higher risk of hospitalization, reports Healio . "Recent studies of influenza vaccine effectiveness (VE) have observed lower VE with increasing time since vaccination, suggesting that vaccine protection wanes over an influenza season," the researchers said. "These findings raise the question of optimal vaccination timing; specifically, should vaccination in late summer or early fall be avoided in favor of delaying vaccination in order to maintain greater protection during the latter part of the influenza season?" The researchers found in a typical season, delaying vaccination until October boosted flu hospitalizations if more than 14 percent of older adults usually vaccinated in August and September did not get vaccinated. The team also observed that a shift toward vaccination in August and September also raised the rate of influenza-associated hospitalizations on average, "but this result was also sensitive to influenza season timing."

Six research groups presented promising information on a potential blood test to screen for Alzheimer's at Monday's Alzheimer's Association International Conference, reports STAT News . One experimental test out of Japan appears to be about 88 percent accurate at indicating the risk levels for an older adult developing Alzheimer's. A functional blood test for Alzheimer's would be the realization of a long-held dream within the scientific and medical communities and would give doctors a relatively simple, safe, and practical way to ascertain if patients are at high risk. Dr. Richard Hodes, director of the National Institute on Aging, said the "promising" blood tests will soon be used to choose older adults for federally funded studies. If patients are identified early and studies begin promptly, there could be breakthroughs in treatment for the various forms of dementia.