| Aged care fees set to rise for many in $1.5b overhaul
MANY new residents in high-care nursing homes will pay an average of $635 more a year from next year as part of a $1.5 billion Federal Government revamp to relieve strain on aged-care services. Almost half of all people entering high-care nursing homes will be charged a higher accommodation fee from March next year, while about one-fifth will pay less - on average $1317 - as part of a move to spread charges more equitably. Those already in homes will not have to pay the fee increases. For the first time self-funded retirees who cannot meet their own accommodation costs will be eligible for government help, as part of the changes announced by the Prime Minister, John Howard, yesterday. "There's an anomaly in the present system where a pensioner and a self-funded retiree with the same amount of assets are treated differently," Mr Howard said on Channel Nine.
Stockland buys ARC business for $329m
Property group Stockland has acquired Australian Retirement Communities (ARC), the largest privately-owned operator in the domestic retirement market, for $329 million. The ARC business consists of 17 retirement villages containing 2,850 independent living units and three villages under construction with 560 units, along with a development pipeline of six villages with 825 units. Stockland will amalgamate ARC with its Retirement Living business which has a medium term development pipeline of more than 3000 homes and units. Stockland's development division head Denis Hickey said the ARC business was an ideal strategic fit and will accelerate the company's growth in the sector. "The acquisition of ARC will position Stockland as a top five retirement village operator in Australia when combined with our extensive development pipeline," Mr Hickey said.
Love means always having to say sorry
I am staring at a mug shot of actor Ryan O'Neal on one of those 24-hour news channels. According to the too-good-looking-to-be-taken-seriously Hollywood reporter, Mr. O'Neal was arrested last weekend for allegedly assaulting his own son. Apparently, O'Neal was dining out with Farrah Fawcett, mother of one of his children. They were celebrating her (gasp!) 60th birthday and came home to find O'Neal's 42-year-old son (not the one he had with Farrah) and pregnant girlfriend (the son's, not Ryan's) in the house. Still with me? The reporter doesn't specify what the son and girlfriend were doing in O'Neal's home. I assume they live there like the happy, multigenerational clan they clearly are. The youngsters were likely engaged in some kind of risky business while the folks were away, like dancing around the living room in their skivvies.
Centenarians Hold The Key To Fountain Of Youth
(WJZ) It is common knowledge that only a small percentage of people have ever lived to be 100, but new research shows the fountain of youth may be found in one of the least expected places--the very old.Healthwatch reporter Kellye Lynne investigates how studying centenarians--those who live to 100--may not only hold the answer to what triggers disease, but also help doctors learn more about fighting it.For centuries people have been searching for ways to grow old and feel young, and now doctors known as gene hunters say they are finding some answers.Only one in 10,000 Americans ever live to see 100, but as part of a special investigative report, WJZ's Lynn caught up with several of them in the Baltimore area. Baltimore County resident Margaret Bauer is one of those rarities who doctors have been studying in their search for answers to longevity.At 105, Bauer is the only one in her senior living center--The Franklin Woods Center--to have lived past the century mark.
Banking on success
Paul Bognanno apparently made a great impression while serving on the board of directors of North Central Bancshares.
On July 1, the Des Moines native will step up to become president and chief executive officer of the organization and CEO of Fort Dodge-based First Federal Savings Bank of Iowa. Bognanno joined the company and bank board of directors in 2005 and has been leading a strategic planning initiative there for several months.
Through that process, it became extremely evident to me and to the board what a great addition he would be to the bank as CEO, said current president and CEO David M. Bradley. His background really complements so much of what we do at the bank.
Bognanno, who was previously employed with the Principal Financial Group and its predecessors, Principal Mutual Life Insurance Co.
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