Apple unveils Apple Watch Series 12 and Ultra 4 with new health features
Apple has announced its most advanced health and fitness experience yet, introducing the Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4 with a new Health Sensing System that delivers the most accurate heart rate sensing in a wearable, along with a redesigned Health app powered by Apple Intelligence. The new watches measure heart rate every five seconds and HRV as often as every five minutes, 24 times more frequently, and introduce a readiness score from 0 to 10 with recommendations like Recover or Go For It. The redesigned Health app, coming later this year with iOS 27, adds an Insights tab and a Longevity tab featuring Health Age, which compares users' metrics to their chronological age. Users can also schedule and purchase lab tests covering over 50 biomarkers for $119 at approximately 2,000 Quest Diagnostics locations in the U.S., and new movement assessments use the iPhone camera and Apple Watch for at-home evaluations. The watches also support perimenopause and menopause tracking, and watchOS 27 will be available starting September 14 for Apple Watch Series 9 or later, Apple Watch SE 3, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later.
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Taiwan Faces Demographic Crisis, Population Expected to Drop 48% to 12.15 Million by 2075
Bloomberg reports that Taiwan's population may decline to about 12.15 million by 2075, a drop of roughly 48% from 2026 levels, amid a continued decrease in births and young population, while the number of elderly rises significantly, posing long-term challenges to the labor market, economy, and defense capabilities. Estimates from Taiwan's National Development Council (NDC), based on household registration data, indicate that the working-age population will shrink by nearly two-thirds over the next 50 years. By 2075, the population aged 0-14 will be only 585,000, the working-age population (15-64) will be about 5.13 million, and those aged 65 and above will reach 6.43 million, meaning the elderly will outnumber the working-age population and account for more than half of the total population. These figures reflect risks after the population peaked at 23.6 million in 2019, and could also affect Taiwan's security, as the military still relies partly on conscription amid threats from China.
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Medicare Advantage Plans Cut Grocery Cards and Dental Perks for 2026
Medicare Advantage plans are reducing supplemental benefits such as grocery cards and dental allowances for the 2026 plan year, even as many maintain $0 premiums. The overall MA market contracted by 9% to 3,373 individual plans, and 13% of individual MA-PD enrollees faced plan terminations, double the prior year's rate. While dental, vision, and hearing access remained broadly stable, fewer enrollees had plans offering over-the-counter benefits, meals, transportation, and in-home support. Insurers cite rising medical costs and payment pressure, with MedPAC estimating average rebates of nearly $2,400 per enrollee for individual plans in 2026. Beneficiaries whose plans are terminated generally receive guaranteed-issue rights for Medigap, but those in plans that cut benefits do not, and returning to Original Medicare outside the Medigap open-enrollment window can leave retirees with uncapped 20% coinsurance if insurers deny or price out coverage.
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