Ms. Super Centenarian

Action to take

Imagine a beauty and talent pageant with lovely, talented women
sharing their wisdom and philosophy of life—and imagine the
contestants are all over 100 years old.

Why

In 1954, the Miss America contest was broadcast live on television,
capturing 39% of American viewers (27 million people).
It spawned many imitators, Miss USA, Miss Teen America,
Miss Junior Teen America, Miss Universe, Mrs. America, etc.
I found there also is a Ms. Senior America contest that has a
minimum age of 60.

While the contestants are very attractive, judging is 30% talent,
30% interview, 20% philosophy of life, and only 20% evening gown
competition. How appropriate that weight is given to sharing
what one has learned. The contest seeks contestants who have
contributed to their communities. It emphasizes inner beauty as well
as outer beauty.

The contest got me thinking. Can a Ms Centenarian contest be far off?
I for one would love to see it. It will probably have an even stronger
emphasis on wisdom and philosophy of life. In 2000 the US had
72,000 centenarians (Americans 100 years or older). The US
Census Bureau predicts we will have 1.2 million centenarians by 2050.
A contest seems inevitable. Now that centenarians are becoming common,
we are hearing about super centenarians—people 110+ years old.
Perhaps a Ms Super Centenarian Contest will come as well.

Why care? Imagining a Ms Centenarian or Ms Super Centenarian
pageant pushes and stretches your thinking about aging
and how vital people can be at 100+ years. That pushing
and stretching helps you believe it is possible for you to be vital
and doing exciting things in your hundreds. Once you believe
such a pageant is possible, you pay more attention to
what it takes to do it live well into your hundreds
—because it sure beats the alternative.

Quotes

Beautiful young people are accidents of nature,
but beautiful old people are works of art.
~Eleanor Roosevelt

Beauty is as beauty does.
~(source unknown)

Humor

If I had known I would live so long,
I would have taken better care of myself.
~Mark Twain (and many others)

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Anti-Aging Psychologist Dr. Michael Brickey is keynote speaker and author of the Oprah-featured book, Defy Aging and 52 baby steps to Grow Young. The books and his Reverse Aging anti-aging hypnosis CDs comprise his anti-aging system.

If You Didn’t Have Insurance…

Action to take

Consider what you would do you if you did not have health insurance
or if you had a Health Savings Account.

Why

I remember when there was no dental insurance. You went to the dentist
and you wrote a check for the bill. Now many people have dental insurance
and have to check whether the dentist is on the plan, what is covered, etc.
The dentist in turn has to enroll in and track dozens of insurance plans.
The result is a bureaucratic morass that adds to the cost of the system overall.
Dental insurance is appealing to employees who receive the coverage
as an employee benefit. To them it seems like a free benefit.

By its nature, insurance restricts choice, rewarding some providers and penalizing others.
Traditional insurance rewards traditional medicine and traditional pharmaceuticals.
As health savings accounts become more common, consumers will have more choice.
Depending on how HSA plans are written, HSAs may enable consumers to choose
to spend healthcare dollars on alternative medicine treatments such as massage,
acupuncture, and Pilates classes. They may enable reimbursement of supplements
such as herbs, vitamins, and hormone therapies. They may even cover spas, health clubs,
and weight loss programs. Psychotherapy, which is often only covered at 50% and then
only with managed care authorization, would no longer be capped or micromanaged.
Personal coaching might even be covered.

There is an terrible inequity in the current system in that those who pay cash
(relieving the healthcare practitioners of large, cumbersome billing expenses) end up
paying more as they don’t get the discounts insurance companies demand.
As HSAs become more common, consumers will insist on not paying more than doctors
charge insurance companies. They may (and should) even insist on cash discounts.

HSAs save money by greatly reducing (but not eliminating) the bureaucratieaucratic overhead.
They give the consumer more choice. They will ultimately separate employment from healthcare,
making it easier to change jobs. The primary downside is that employees often see HSAs
as an attempt by management to cut costs by reducing benefits (as is sometimes the case).
Paul Zane Pilzer says 90% of people can purchase healthcare insurance for half of what
it cost employers and once purchased it cannot be cancelled or raised beyond normal
cost increases. This can be a wonderful solution to many individuals, especially
those who currently do not have healthcare insurance. At a macro level, however, it is a shell
game as costs for the 10% with serious health problems are shifted to government funding.

As you have probably gathered, my libertarian penchant likes HSAs while my ultimate
preference would be insurance for catastrophic events and out of pocket payment for everything else.
The question is: If you had an HSA instead of your current insurance, would you spend
healthcare funds differently? If so, what has been your personal cost of not pursuing the healthcare
choices that you consider optimal? What choices would you make if you had the money your employer
currently spends on insurance and you had to pay for all of your medical expenses out of pocket?

Quotes

Most Americans receive health insurance from their employers and lose their health
insurance when they lose their jobs, but that’s about to change….Employer sponsored
healthcare will be mostly eliminated in the next twenty years.
~Paul Zane Pilzer, author of The New Healthcare Insurance Solution

 Discussion on a blog: “Government today restricts our medical choices in countless ways,
direct and indirect, which has led many to call for a Canadian style, single-payer system.
Sorta homeopathic, isn’t it? A LARGER dose of the poison that’s killing us will actually
be the cure.” Another reader astutely commented, “Actually that’s allopathy.”
[Homeopathic medicine uses minute quantities of toxins to produce cures;
allopathy is traditional medicine.]
~from DB’s Medical Rants, www.medrants.com

Humor

A man awakened after emergency heart bypass surgery to find himself
at a Catholic Hospital. A nun asked him how he was going to pay.
He explained that he did not have any health insurance or savings.
“Do you have any relatives who could help?” asked the nun.
“I only have a spinster sister, who is a nun,” He replied.
Angrily, the nun protested, “Nuns are not spinsters! Nuns are married to God.”
The patient replied, “Then send the bill to my brother-in-law.”

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Anti-Aging Psychologist Dr. Michael Brickey is keynote speaker and author of the Oprah-featured book, Defy Aging and 52 baby steps to Grow Young. The books and his Reverse Aging anti-aging hypnosis CDs comprise his anti-aging system.

Report Card for Seniors

Action to take

Keep a healthy perspective on the future. Despite the media’s drumbeat
of problems, Americans are becoming healthier.

Why

On March 9th the National Institute on Aging released it study,
65+ in the United States: 2005. It found that for Americans over 65:
~Disability rates dropped from 26.2% in 1982 to 19.7% in 1999 despite
the group including a higher proportion of seniors over 80. (Note that a
chronic health condition, e.g., arthritis is not considered a disability unless
it causes functional limitations in activities of daily living.)
~Poverty rates dropped from 35% in 1959 to 10% in 2003 (much of the
improvement is due to Social Security).
~Between 1950 and 2003 high school graduate rates rose from
17% to 67% and college graduate rates rose from 3.4% in 1950 to 17.4%.
(Education enhances adaptability and is correlated with better health.)
~Even at ages 85 and older, only 18.1% lived in nursing homes.
~Death rates from heart disease declined dramatically.
~Cigarette smoking rates declined.
With improving health and a greater emphasis on quality of life, the
World Health Organization has developed a new statistic–
Healthy Life Expectancy (HALE). In the US the HALE for men is
67.2 years and for women 71.3 years.
Yes, obesity rates are increasing. On the whole, however, the data
suggest a healthier, more resourceful senior population–and the trends
are likely to continue. If you would like to see or download the free
254 page study, it is at http://www.census.gov/prod/2006pubs/p23-209.pdf .

Quotes

Many people have an image of aging that may be 20 years out of date.
The very current portrait presented here shows how much has changed
and where trends may be headed in the future.
~Richard M. Suzman, Ph.D., Director of the 65+ in the United States: 2005

Humor

The census worker asked an older timer, “How many people live in this town?”
“About 4,000. Been that way for 25 years,” he replied.
“Haven’t any people move in–any babies been born here?” asked the census worker.
The old timer replied, “Sure we’ve had babies; but every time one’s born someone leaves town.”

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Anti-Aging Psychologist Dr. Michael Brickey is keynote speaker and author of the Oprah-featured book, Defy Aging and 52 baby steps to Grow Young. The books and his Reverse Aging anti-aging hypnosis CDs comprise his anti-aging system.