Covered California is extending its enrollment deadline until Saturday, December 17th – we sit down with the head of Covered CA to answer your questions; Bakersfield police shot and killed a 73-year-old man with dementia – we look at the challenges of taking care of older adults with dementia, as well as early signs to watch out for; plus, do dating apps make courtship easier or more exhausting?
Covered California head Peter Lee answers questions over 2017 enrollment
Covered California is extending its deadline to enroll for health insurance coverage that begins January 1st. The new deadline is midnight on Saturday, December 17th.
Read the full story here.
Guests:
Peter Lee, executive director of Covered California
Chad Terhune, senior correspondent for Kaiser Health News and its affiliated news site, California Healthline
4 signs a loved one may be struggling with dementia
On Monday, Bakersfield Police shot and killed 73-year-old Francisco Serna, who they later learned was suffering from dementia — a tragedy that highlights the challenges of maintaining the stewardship and safety of loved ones with dementia.
“AirTalk” host Larry Mantle sat down with Dr. Laura Mosqueda, Professor of Family Medicine and Geriatrics at USC, to talk about the struggles of taking care of a family member with dementia, as well as potential warning signs of early dementia, which are especially relevant as people go home for the holidays.
“Families come home and visit a loved one, an older adult, for the holidays, they haven't seen them in maybe six months or even a year, and notice significant changes in cognition, behavior, thought process, confusion,” she said.
According to Dr. Mosqueda, people over 85 are the fastest growing population in the U.S., and nearly half of this populating has some type of dementing illness.
“I encourage people, if it's okay to do ethically, to snoop around a little bit,” Dr. Mosqueda said.
Here are four signs of dementia you can watch for if you’re concerned about an older parent or family member:
1. Financial problems
“Some of the early signs that something is going wrong are people having trouble handling their finances,” Dr. Mosqueda said.
This was the case for the mother of “AirTalk” listener Trish in Anaheim.
"I started discovering that she was writing checks to every charity donation in the world that was sending her letters in the mail,” she said.
According to Dr. Mosqueda, people with dementia are susceptible to scams, frauds and overall mishandling of finances. Pertinent questions to ask when considering a family member’s situation are: “Is check writing still okay? Are bank accounts being drained? Has the electricity been cut off at times because somebody who normally always paid their bills has stopped doing that?”
2. Trouble with transportation
“Transportation issues, getting lost in familiar environments, they [people with dementia] get from point A to point B — it should take them ten minutes — but instead, who knows where they've been in their car and they show up an hour late,” Dr. Mosqueda said.
3. Misplacing Objects
"AirTalk" listener Stacy in the Fairfax District said early signals of her father's dementia were that "... he did lose his keys, he did lose his wallet."
This forgetfulness could be a sign of something going wrong. Checking for spoiled food in the refrigerator is a good idea as well, said Dr. Marqueda. Although occasionally misplacing keys isn't necessarily abnormal.
"'Where did I put the keys' is not a sign of dementia," she said. "Or we would all be in trouble."
4. Covering for memory loss
Dr. Mosqueda said one might ask a family member, “‘These days, who’s the president-elect?’... And they’ll go, ‘Well, aren’t all those politicians crooks?’”
This response redirects the conversation, but “they’re just covering for the for the fact they actually don’t know,” she said. “You can have moderately advanced Alzheimer’s disease and do great at a cocktail party, because you can do all the superficial conversation, socially appropriate kinds of stuff.”
“AirTalk” listener in Huntington Beach said she has similar issues trying to care for her mother.
“The problem is that she covers beautifully. So she goes to the doctor and the doctor says ‘Your mom is fine.’ But when we say, ‘Listen, we need to get financial control, Mom's sending her money to some boyfriend in Canada,’ he won’t declare her incompetent fiduciarily, because he doesn’t want to take that step.
Dr. Marqueda said ultimately there is no one size fits all answer or sign and if you have concerns about an older loved one, go to the doctor.
Caregivers can find support and resources here and here.
To hear the full segment, click the blue playhead above.
Guest:
Laura Mosqueda, M.D., Professor of Family Medicine and Geriatrics at the Keck School of Medicine of University of Southern California
How the Fed hiking interest rates plays out in Southern California’s economy, housing market
As many expected, the U.S. Federal Reserve has hiked its benchmark interest rate a quarter of a percentage point from the current 0.25-0.50 range to 0.50-0.75 and says to expect three more rate increases over the course of 2017.
The unanimous vote is seen as a nod of confidence to the economic progress the U.S. has continued to make, though there is still uncertainty moving forward, given the ongoing White House transition and the numerous campaign promises President-elect Trump made, including plans to increase spending and cut taxes. Mortgage rates have also been on a steady rise since Mr. Trump was elected, which some economists say could be a signal that now is the time to buy or sell if you’re looking to do either one.
Today on AirTalk, Larry and two Southern California economists explore what the interest rate hikes could mean for consumers in the short and long term and take a look at the state of Southern California’s housing market.
Guests:
William Yu, economist with the UCLA Anderson Forecast; his areas of expertise include the Los Angeles economy and housing market
Mark Schniepp, director of the California Economic Forecast
Desert Sun series digs into unintended consequences of Prop 47 realignment
In 2014, California passed Prop 47, releasing thousands of inmates with non-violent, low-level offenses as an attempt to alleviate its overcrowded prisons.
Two years later, The Desert Sun reports that these ex-inmates have only fed into a larger cycle of homelessness, drug addiction and petty crime.
Host Larry Mantle speaks with Jill Castellano of The Desert Sun about the unexpected repercussions of Prop 47, and how attempting to solve one of California’s most pressing problems has only fueled another.
Guest:
Jill Castellano, data investigations editor for The Desert Sun; she tweets
Why you’re just not that into your dating apps
According to a recent Atlantic article, dating apps like Tinder and Hinge may be creating more exhaustion than excitement when thinking about the prospect of meeting someone new.
With the promise of a quick, productive way to filter through all the available people out there, there’s also the chore of swiping through the endless possibilities in the hopes of striking gold.
But are these apps making things harder or is dating just as overwhelming as it’s always been? And if the age-old challenge of finding a mate is to blame, then how have dating apps become a less fun and more fatigue-inducing experience?
Guests:
Julie Beck, senior associate editor at The Atlantic; she wrote the article, “The Rise of Dating App Fatigue”
Julie Albright, Ph.D., professor of psychology at USC’s Dornsife School and a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist specializing in infidelity, relationship issues and online dating. She tweets