Aging

Minnesotans are living longer and that trend is expected to continue. According to Minnesota State Demographic Center projections, the number of adults 65 years and older is anticipated to double between 2010 and 2030. That means 1 in 5 Minnesotans will be an older adult.

MPR News is looking at this shift and what it means to all of us.

Related: End in Mind delves into how our culture engages with loss, dying and death and offers resources to live more and fear less.

February 2, 2021 5:29 AM

After slow start, Minnesota long-term care centers get more vaccinations

A federal COVID-19 vaccine program for Minnesota’s most vulnerable people is going more slowly than expected. Walgreens and CVS are part of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention program to vaccinate residents and staff in a majority of the long-term care facilities.

by Peter Cox

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February 1, 2021 3:51 PM

Report: Many U.S. nursing home staff decline first COVID shots

Only a little more than a third of nursing home workers have been getting shots against COVID-19 when the vaccinations are first offered. A CDC expert says more staffers do get vaccinated when a second or third clinic is held at a nursing home.

by The Associated Press

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January 19, 2021 9:29 AM

'Peanuts' pen pals find comfort in correspondence

After being furloughed from his job at the Denver International Airport, Wesley Morgan began writing to over 500 older adults living in isolation due to the pandemic. He says 142 responded, and many have become consistent correspondents.

by The Associated Press

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January 3, 2021 7:15 PM

Amid isolation and loneliness, elderly face crumbling safety net

While seniors are among the first in line for the COVID-19 vaccine, in many communities and states other safety nets in place to support the elderly are unraveling quickly.

by Sally Herships

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December 28, 2020 5:25 PM

COVID vaccinations ramp up in Minn. long-term care

Staff and residents in nursing homes across the state began getting their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine Monday, a hopeful sign in an industry hard-hit by the virus.

by Peter Cox

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December 23, 2020 5:31 AM

'Step in the right direction' as Minnesota nursing home residents get first vaccine doses

The first residents and staff at a St. Cloud nursing home and a Prairie Island Indian Community assisted living facility have received their initial doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. It’s good news for long-term care facilities, which have been hardest hit by the virus. Sixty-five percent of the state's 4,896 deaths have been among long-term care residents.

by Peter Cox

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December 18, 2020 6:03 PM

'A ray of hope': Vaccines should roll out soon in Minnesota long-term care facilities

As Minnesota health care workers receive the initial doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine, residents of long-term care facilities are next in line to start receiving those shots — perhaps by the end of the month.

by Peter Cox

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November 25, 2020 4:00 AM

COVID spread causing 'surreal' staffing problems in nursing homes

Long-term care in Minnesota is in dire need of staffing support. With COVID-19 peaking, large numbers of staff are out sick or quarantining because of exposure. The situation is forcing state officials to take unusual measures to fill gaps.

by Peter Cox

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November 25, 2020 4:00 AM

Research: Older people resilient, but stressed by COVID-19 isolation

The pandemic has isolated many of us from friends, family and coworkers. But for older people who live alone, the loss of connection can cut even deeper. Researchers have been talking with dozens of older adults in Minnesota and North Dakota since the pandemic started, in an ongoing study of the impacts of isolation.

by Dan Gunderson

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November 19, 2020 10:39 AM

Not just COVID: Nursing home neglect deaths surge in shadows

As more than 90,000 of America’s long-term care residents have died in the coronavirus pandemic, advocates for the elderly say a tandem wave of death separate from the virus has quietly claimed tens of thousands more, often because overburdened workers haven’t been able to give them the care they need.

by The Associated Press

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