Haines Borough has the highest percentage of residents over 65 in Alaska. And later this month, they could have the highest percentage of gold medals, too.
Aging
Alaska Department of Health and Social Services suspends thousands of senior benefits payments
The Alaska Department of Health and Social Services has suspended payments for some recipients of the state’s Senior Benefits Program due to a lack of funding.
Unalakleet constructing assisted living facility to serve elders of Norton Sound
The facility is the first of its kind in the Norton Sound region and will have room for ten occupants. It will give elders in the region an option to receive services in a location closer to their home communities.
Mixing science with traditional knowledge, researchers hope to get seal oil on the menu
There’s a traditional foods movement happening in Alaska. Dieticians, administrators, and others are trying to get more wild foods like moose, berries, and beach greens into health care facilities and schools. But there’s one food that elders really, really want, and they aren’t allowed to have: seal oil.
To feed elders, traditional foods take untraditional route
Most people in northwest Alaska grew up eating traditional foods, like caribou, seal, and different kinds of fish. But as they aged and moved into long-term care facilities, those foods were no longer regularly available to them because of federal food safety regulations. A team in Kotzebue is changing that.
Haines keeps title of oldest borough in Alaska
If the old adage with “age comes wisdom” is true, then on average, Haines is the wisest of Alaska’s boroughs. The state released 2017 data on population this week. Haines retained its superlative status as the oldest borough.
Petersburg looks at fees for tax exemption, cruise passengers
Petersburg Borough Assembly heard Monday from mostly supporters of proposals to charge two new fees in the borough. One would be an administrative fee for senior citizens who apply for an exemption from local sales tax. Another would be a fee on cruise ship passengers visiting the area.
Modifying houses so seniors can stay in their homes
Shirley and Tom Clements’ home is steeped in memories. Photos going back six generations cover the walls of the packed living room. Knick-knacks and animal figurines fill shelves above the kitchen sink. They’ve been in the house for more than 20 years.
Preventing problems with exercise for elders
In many parts of Alaska, seniors have trouble accessing proper medical care and finding doctors who accept Medicare. Organizations across the state are working to solve the issue but meanwhile others are trying to make the need less pressing by focusing on prevention.
Alaskans are aging in Alaska, so now what?
People flooded Alaska in the 1970s and early ’80s looking for work in the oil industry and other fields. Many are still here 40 years later. Instead of fleeing to warmer weather, Alaskans are aging in Alaska.