By Simon Peter Lokomo, MPH — Public Health Last reviewed: August 2026 The short answer Guardianship is a court process that transfers a person’s legal right to make decisions to someone else. It is the most restrictive option available, courts are supposed to use it only when nothing less restrictive will work, and it is…
By Simon Peter Lokomo, MPH — Public Health The short answer Two different things get called elder financial exploitation, and they behave differently. Fraud and scams by strangers affect roughly 5% of older adults in a given year. Financial abuse by someone the person knows and trusts, usually a family member and most often an…
By Simon Peter Lokomo, MPH — Public HealthLast reviewed: July 2026 An Area Agency on Aging is a local public agency that connects people over 60 to services in their own community: meals, rides to appointments, help in the home, caregiver support, and falls prevention classes. There are more than 600 across the United States,…
There are eight main ways to pay for home modifications, and most families use a combination. If money is tight, start with Medicaid waivers or your Area Agency on Aging. Veterans should look at VA grants.
The VA offers three home modification grants for veterans: HISA, SAH, and SHA. HISA (up to $6,800) is the most widely available. It covers medically necessary changes for both service-connected and non-service-connected conditions, so most older veterans qualify.
By Simon Peter Lokomo, MPH — Public Health · Last reviewed: June 2026 Most home safety modifications cost between $100 and $25,000, and the average homeowner spends $3,000–$15,000 on aging-in-place changes (Lancaster/IHS, 2026). The cheapest fixes prevent the most accidents: grab bars, brighter lighting, and non-slip surfaces run under $500 total and address the most common fall risks. The big…