In the News
NON-OPIOID PAIN DRUG APPROVED
People dealing with serious short-term pain have a promising new nonaddictive option to get relief.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Journavx (suzetrigine) earlier this year, a first-in-its-class medication that works by blocking pain signals in the peripheral nerves, before they reach the brain. That’s different than opioids, which are considered highly addictive because they activate the brain’s reward system.
Journavx is the first new type of pain medication to become available in more than two decades. Taken as a pill, it is approved to relieve short-term pain that typically stems from tissue injury as a result of trauma or surgery. More than 80 million Americans are prescribed medication for acute pain each year, according to Vertex Pharmaceuticals, the maker of Journavx. Right now, about half of them receive opioids.
The FDA called the approval “an important public health milestone in acute pain management.” A non-opioid pain reliever “offers an opportunity to mitigate certain risks associated with using an opioid for pain and provides patients with another treatment option.”
$15.50
list price per 50-milligram Journavx pill
More than 200 people, on average, died each day from an opioid overdose in 2022, says data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And opioids were misused by millions more.
In two clinical trials, Journavx demonstrated statistically significant pain reduction in patients who had routine abdominal or foot surgeries, compared with a placebo.
The most common side effects from the drug were itching, muscle spasms and rashes.
“It’s going to play a significant role,” Jianguo Cheng, M.D., director of the Cleveland Clinic’s pain medicine fellowship program, says about Journavx. It doesn’t eliminate pain as well as a strong opioid, he explains, but “most people do not need very strong opioids, even for more severe pain.”
Journavx has a list price of $15.50 per 50-milligram pill.
FINANCIAL HELP FOR CAREGIVERS GAINS SUPPORT
A proposal to give family caregivers a federal tax credit of up to $5,000 a year to help defray the costs of caring for a spouse or other loved one is before Congress, and advocates hope this time it becomes law.
Called the Credit for Caring Act, the proposal has bipartisan support in the House and Senate, and is being pushed hard by advocacy groups, including AARP.
“America’s family caregivers help their parents, spouses and others stay at home,” says Nancy LeaMond, AARP chief advocacy and engagement officer. “We urge Congress to put money back into pockets of hardworking family caregivers by passing the act.”
There are more than 48 million unpaid caregivers in the U.S., and they routinely dip into their savings each year to help family members with health issues. These caregivers spend an average of more than $7,200 annually on caring for loved ones, or $11,500 if they’re caring for a veteran, according to AARP research.
Caregivers provide about $600 billion in care annually in unpaid work, saving taxpayers billions of dollars by helping delay or prevent expensive nursing home care and hospital stays.
Older Adults Miss Out on Food Benefits
Nearly 60 percent of low-income older adults who qualify for federal food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) aren’t using it, according to an analysis by AARP’s Public Policy Institute. That means about 16 million Americans 50-plus miss out on help paying for food.
Roughly 1 in 10 older adults have limited access to adequate nutritious food due to insufficient financial resources, AARP research found. Such “food insecurity” can lead to higher rates of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, asthma, depression and other illnesses.
“These findings point to the need for education and outreach about the program, as well as efforts at the federal and state levels to make it easier for older adults to access SNAP,” says Olivia Dean, AARP senior policy adviser and coauthor of the report.
For example, simplifying and streamlining application processes could help more older adults get the food benefits they are eligible for.
Medicare: Virtual Visits Extended—for Now
Apopular Medicare program that allows beneficiaries to receive medical care from home will continue until Sept. 30 after its extension was included in a bill passed by Congress and signed by President Trump to avoid a government shutdown in March.
The expanded telehealth coverage, which began in March 2020 to keep older adults from being exposed to COVID-19 in doctors’ waiting rooms, has been a boon for those who have difficulty getting to an office to see a physician, including older adults living in rural areas or with mobility problems. Caregivers strapped for time to transport their loved ones also have benefited.
Federal health officials say telehealth use remains at levels much higher than before the pandemic. Nearly three-quarters of adults 50 and older said they used telehealth services in the previous year, according to a 2024 AARP poll.
The telehealth waiver ended when the public health emergency was declared over. But telehealth services have been extended by Congress in budget bills since then.
SERVICE … CATS?
Dogs have long filled roles as helpmates for older people, but researchers at Washington State University and in Belgium found that some cats, with their “attention-seeking and sociability,” could also serve as service animals to relieve stress. Cats were skeptical.