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Background: The intersection of race/ethnicity with disability is a critical dimension of mental health outcomes in later ages that remains under-investigated., Objective: We examined the role of race-ethnicity in moderating the associations between functional disabilities and subsequent depression among Americans 51 and older and stratified into the two age-groups of midlife (51-64) and older adults (≥65)., Methods: Using a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling Americans (≥51; n = 7475) in the 2016-2018 Health and Retirement Study, we conducted bivariate and multivariable regression analyses. Racial-ethnic groups included non-Hispanic (NH) Black, Hispanic, and NH White and a binary (0/1) outcome defined subsequent depression in 2018. The total number of difficulties on the Nagi, Lawton, and Katz disability scales represented baseline (2016) functional disabilities with a secondary four-level (no/mild/severe with assistance/severe without assistance) disability indicator incorporated to examine the role of assistance with daily living., Results: Across age-groups, subsequent depression was significantly more prevalent among NH Whites with functional disabilities compared to counterparts reporting no disabilities. Compared to NH Black and Hispanic counterparts, midlife NH Whites were three times more likely to report subsequent depression with each unit increase in the functional disability score, after adjusting for covariates. However, we observed no such racial-ethnic differences among older adults. Among the 51+ severe with no assistance group, adjusted odds of subsequent depression among NH Whites was 2.5 times higher than minority counterparts., Conclusion: Health programs and environmental adaptations supporting functional care needs in later ages could be beneficial for improving mental health of adults with disabilities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no funding or conflicts of interest information to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background and Objectives: Fall incidents from unsafe home environments are frequent in older-adult homes but the literature is ambiguous whether it is the presence/absence, or the interplay of such conditions and physical functioning that is of salience. We therefore estimated whether unsafe home environment is adversely associated with subsequent falls among older adults and what proportion of this association was mediated through limitations in daily and instrumental activities of daily living (ADL/IADL)., Research Design and Methods: Using a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries (≥65 years) in the 2018-2019 National Health and Aging Trends Study (n = 2,599), we conducted bivariate and multivariable analyses. We examined baseline conditions of home disorders, unsafe bathroom settings, unsafe house/building features, and house disrepairs in 2018 and their relation with subsequent falls in 2019, after controlling for covariates. To assess whether ADL/IADL limitations mediated this relationship, we employed the Karlson-Holm-Breen methodology., Results: In 2019, the self-reported prevalence of falls among older adults was estimated at 34.68%. Although baseline home disorders had both a direct (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.14, 95% confidence interval [CI]:1.03,1.26) and an indirect effect through limitations in ADL and IADL (aOR: 1.01; 95% CI: 1.00,1.03), the relation between unsafe bathroom settings and subsequent falls was unclear. Unsafe house/building features and house disrepairs were not statistically significantly related either directly or indirectly with subsequent falls., Discussion and Implications: Addressing home disorders through policy and housing assessments to highlight home environmental safety would be essential to address falls among older adults., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

A report published last year by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) highlighted that COVID-19 case counts are more likely to be high in lower quality nursing homes than in higher quality ones. Since then, multiple studies have examined this association with a handful also exploring the role of facility quality in explaining resident deaths from the virus. Despite this wide interest, no previous study has investigated how the relation between quality and COVID-19 mortality among nursing home residents may have changed, if at all, over the progression of the pandemic. This understanding is indeed lacking given that prior studies are either cross-sectional or are analyses limited to one specific state or region of the country. To address this gap, we analyzed changes in nursing home resident deaths across the US between June 1, 2020 and January 31, 2021 (n = 12,415 nursing homes X 8 months) using both descriptive and multivariable statistics. We merged publicly available data from multiple federal agencies with mortality rate (per 100,000 residents) as the outcome and CMS 5-star quality rating as the primary explanatory variable of interest. Covariates, based on the prior literature, consisted of both facility- and community-level characteristics. Findings from our secondary analysis provide robust evidence of the association between nursing home quality and resident deaths due to the virus diminishing over time. In connection, we discuss plausible reasons, especially duration of staff shortages, that over time might have played a critical role in driving the quality-mortality convergence across nursing homes in the US., Competing Interests: One of the study coauthors (SCT) is affiliated with the Fors MarshGroup (FMG), Arlington, VA. However, FMG did not play any role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Neither did FMG provide any financial support in the form of the coauthor’s salary and/or research materials. The coauthor affiliated with the FMG undertook work for this study in the role of an independent researcher working specifically and only during weekend hours outside of his employment with FMG. We also confirm that the study coauthor’s commercial affiliation with FMG does not alter our adherence to all PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.