shAARP Talk: Observations from AARP

CNN/Money: AARP Looks To Help Older Workers Find Jobs In Tough Times

"While it's not easy to land a job in this weak economy, older workers are in a particularly tough spot." Workers age 55 and older" spent "an average of 21.1 weeks to land a new job in 2007, about five weeks longer than their younger counterparts, according to AARP. 'Clearly older workers will be more adversely affected because of the time it takes to transition into another job,' said Deborah Russell, AARP's director of workforce issues. During the recession of the early 1990s, older workers were hit hard by mass layoffs. Concerned this is happening again, AARP is reaching out to companies conducting the large-scale downsizings and giving them tip sheets to distribute to older workers. The handouts aim to help workers navigate today's job market by explaining search methods such as online employment boards and the importance of networking."

USA Today: Kennedy Absence Could Impede Progress On FDA, Healthcare Reforms

"One day after revealing that he has been diagnosed with brain cancer, Sen. Edward Kennedy walked out of a hospital here and headed to his Cape Cod home for a stroll on the beach with his dogs, Sunny and Splash, and a sail on his sloop, Mya." Kennedy told reporters, "Good to be back home." USA Today adds that "in a statement, Kennedy's doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital said he 'recovered remarkably quickly' from a brain biopsy and would continue to recuperate at home while they await further lab results. Kennedy, 76, had been hospitalized since suffering a seizure on Saturday."

MarketWatch: Society Of Actuaries Recommends Ways Of Managing Retirement Risk

Robert Powell writes that "the Society of Actuaries has boiled down its list of 15-plus retirement risks to a manageable list of five, along with what it calls 'actuarial approaches' to manage those risks." The Society recommends "retirees and would-be retirees should consider investing in equities, a home and other assets, such as Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) and annuity products with a cost-of-living adjustment" to protect against inflation and loss of a spouse. And to guard against rising health care costs, the Society "suggests retirees and would-be retirees manage this risk by purchasing medical insurance and Medicare supplemental insurance."