Asia's healthcare challenges include aging populations, rising disease, and strained infrastructure, but the crisis is better understood at the kitchen table, where families decide what conditions to treat, and what to ignore, according to their savings. While the APAC region makes up 60% of the world's population, the region accounts for a mere 22% of global healthcare spending. According to the World Health Organization, most developing Asian countries spend just 2-3% of GDP on health, and in many cases public
The address issue has long been contentious in artsy Carmel-by-the-Sea, where residents once threatened to secede from California if they were forced to number their homes. They argued that the lack of addresses - along with other quirks, such as having no streetlights or sidewalks in residential areas, leading many to walk at night with flashlights - added to the vaunted "village character."
For the first time since the end of the second world war, France has recorded more deaths than births, suggesting that the country's long-held demographic advantage over other EU countries is slipping away. Across the country in 2025, there were 651,000 deaths and 645,000 births, according to newly released figures from the national statistics institute Insee. France had long been an exception across Europe, with birthrates that topped many of its neighbours'.
We're living in a curious moment for the status of cancer diagnosis and treatment, within the United States. The overall rate of prevalence for diseases that fall under the wide, wide title of "cancers" is increasing. At the same time, steady improvement to the standard of care and treatment, and newer breakthroughs in therapeutics, have raised survival rates higher than they've ever been before. But for all too many patients, the question is whether they'll be able to afford those
The U.S. population is aging rapidly. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 17.3% of the population - about 57.8 million people in total - are over the age of 64. In 30 years, the number of Americans in this age group is projected to reach 84 million, accounting for 23% of the population. Many within the rapidly growing demographic group are geographically mobile, and every year, millions of Americans aged 65 and older pack up and move to a different part of the country.
The Microsoft founder is heavily involved with programs to prevent disease across the globe, efforts that will likely ramp up in the coming years after he issued his philanthropic foundation with a task: He would donate the vast majority of his wealth, some $100 billion, to the body as long as the funds are spent within the next 20 years.
The first thing to say is that cancer is a very common condition. One in two of us in our lifetimes will be diagnosed with cancer. It is sometimes literally the ageing within a particular community. People have settled in an area at a particular time. We have talked about the ageing of our population. There are modifiable and non-modifiable risks for cancer and one of the most obvious non-modifiable ones is your age.
At 61, Alexander Remus has pared his life down to the essentials. He lives on a modest pension, avoids restaurants, and allows himself just one visit to a movie theater a month to stay sane. Even his prescriptions for a chronic health condition aren't guaranteed some months, he skips doses to stretch his budget. The sacrifices are painful, but he said they're the only way to keep up with the cost of living as a retired highway maintenance worker.
Earlier this year, a CNN story featured a Japanese prison that looked more like a nursing home. The story was striking: Some older adults in Japan are so lonely that they intentionally commit minor crimes to gain access to regular meals, healthcare, and companionship behind bars. This poignant example is not an anomaly. It signals a profound global challenge: how societies care for an aging population.
Under the new plan, families will receive $3,320 per newborn, Taiwan News reported, with twins qualifying for a payment of nearly $7,000. The previous system included payouts that ranged from $1,300 to $2,300 per baby, depending on the mother's employment status. Taiwan became a super-aged society in 2025, meaning that more than 20 percent of its population is aged 65 or older.
Richard Brodsky, the founder of software company Sandata and founder and chairman of Mobile Health, saw a problem when it came to hiring more home care aides. It took time to clear them medically and get approvals from their doctors. So in true entrepreneurial spirit, he rolled out mobile and then fixed clinics to test prospective aides, getting results within two days while developing CareConnect, a company to train aides, so those who qualify could get to work.
Here's the uncomfortable truth: Most founders are still chasing yesterday's markets. They're building tools for productivity, or consumer apps that feel safe and familiar. Meanwhile, a new generation of companies is tackling the most universal customer need on earth - more years of energy, clarity and performance. This isn't wellness 2.0. This is the redefinition of healthcare, insurance, consumer products and even food. By 2030, the longevity economy will be worth an estimated $27 trillion globally. For business leaders, this represents a once-in-a-generation category: It touches everyone, enables recurring revenues and rewards those who build early.
Intergenerational living presents a scalable and emotionally sustainable alternative. This model represents a necessary evolution in housing: one that is inclusive, emotionally aware, and economically sound.
According to a new report from Oxford Economics, the potential output growth for China could fall from around 4% in the 2020s to less than 2% by the 2050s.
Participants who started out with higher levels of well-being also tended to have higher levels of cognitive function. When participants experienced declines in well-being, they showed similarly-sized declines in cognition.
"At a time where it seems fewer and fewer of us want to work in long-term care, the need has never been greater," Harvard healthcare policy analyst David C. Grabowski told The Times' Emily Alpert Reyes in January.
