Beth Baker, a long-time freelance journalist based in Takoma Park, Maryland, contributes regularly to the Washington Post Health section. She also covers aging issues for the AARP Bulletin, and her articles have appeared in Ms., Washingtonian, Nature Conservancy and Preservation, among many other publications. She has won two Gold Mature Media Awards for her reporting on aging. She is a former health care worker, a part-time caregiver to her mother, and a hospice volunteer. She is a member of the Washington Ethical Society.