Articles on "Medicare"
Report Drop in Hospitalizations and Rehospitalizations among Medicare Beneficiaries
A new report suggests that communities where hospitals, other health care providers, and community services work together to coordinate evidence-based hospital discharges and provide better support in the community, can see a 6 percent drop in hospitalizations and rehospitalizations, per 1,000 beneficiaries, in just the first two years. This project relied upon Medicare’s Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs) to anchor and guide the work, and the average community netted about $3 million dollars in annual savings for Medicare. These findings were [...]
Survey Reveals Future of Medicare is No. 1 Worry for Seniors
A national survey of seniors finds that the future of Medicare is their No. 1 concern. At the same time, nearly three out of four (71 percent) would pay more to keep their coverage, according to the 2012 Allsup Medicare Advisor® Seniors Survey. The national study of 1,000 seniors enrolled in Medicare plans was commissioned by Allsup and conducted by Richard Day Research, a Market Probe Company based in Evanston, Ill. Although a combined 89 percent of seniors said they [...]
Settlement Eases Rules for Some Medicare Patients
A New York Times article details the a proposed settlement of a nationwide class-action lawsuit, the administration has agreed to scrap a decades-old practice that required many beneficiaries to show a likelihood of medical or functional improvement before Medicare would pay for skilled nursing and therapy services. Under the agreement, which amounts to a significant change in Medicare coverage rules, Medicare will pay for such services if they are needed to “maintain the patient’s current condition or prevent or slow [...]
107 charged in seven cities with Medicare fraud
(AP) — Federal authorities charged 107 doctors, nurses and social workers in seven cities with Medicare fraud Wednesday in a nationwide crackdown on unrelated scams that allegedly billed the taxpayer-funded program of $452 million — the highest dollar amount in a single Medicare bust in U.S. history. It was the latest in a string of major arrests in the past two years as authorities have targeted fraud that’s believed to cost the government between $60 billion and $90 billion each [...]
Social Security and Medicare Trustees Release Reports
The trustees who oversee Social Security and Medicare release their annual financial reports today. An aging population and an economy that has been slow to rebound are straining the long-term finances of Social Security and Medicare, the government’s two largest benefit programs. Medicare is in worse shape than Social Security because of rising health care costs. But both programs are on a path to become insolvent in the coming decades, unless Congress acts, according to the trustees. Last year, the [...]
Fast Medicare Coverage Even When You’re Not Retired
By George McConnell, Social Security Administration Deputy Area Director You’ve made your decision: although you’re eligible to collect Social Security payments, you’re going to keep working and delay receiving your retirement benefits. But don’t forget about Medicare. Even if you decide to wait until after you are age 65 to apply for retirement benefits, most people should apply for Medicare coverage at age 65. If you’d like to begin your Medicare coverage, you should apply within four months of reaching [...]
Caregiver Tips in Helping with Medicare
By Ross Blair The 43 million caregivers in the U.S. — people who provide unpaid care to family members or friends age 50 and older — are overworked and need help. Here’s why: 26 million of these caregivers hold down fulltime jobs and care of the older person in their spare time. 27 million of them also manage the older person’s finances, which includes helping them decipher their Medicare options. With five parts to Medicare; 10 different Supplement plans: a [...]
Loss of height linked to breathlessness in elderly
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090213/hl_nm/us_height_breathlessness;_ylt=Asa4IF.9doXlfGcHvry05sk_cbYF By Megan Rauscher Megan Rauscher – Fri Feb 13, 2:24 pm ET NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Among seniors, an increase in the ratio of their arm span to their height — indicating a probable loss of height — is strongly associated with shortness of breath and reduced lung capacity, according to a new study. "Many physicians, who regularly care for older individuals, have suspected an association between loss of height and symptoms of shortness of breath," Dr. [...]
Senior Living: An Accessible and Safer Home
Inabelle Levin has always loved going to the opera and attending concerts and plays. But among her various interests, nothing compares to her passion for teaching. And through her personal determination and research along with the help of Greg Sieb, an aging-in-place specialist, she can now remain at home working as an academic tutor. For several months, Inabelle’s family and friends were urging her to move into an assisted living home. Due to the difficulty she has with mobility, they [...]
Home Health Care
Are you or a loved one struggling with health issues that are making it harder to remain at home? Are you looking for care to help you recover from surgery or an injury? Do you need help with household chores or activities of daily living? Is managing a long-term illness becoming more difficult? Home Health Care is a rapidly growing field in the senior care industry that may help families negotiate these challenges and remain in their own home. When [...]
Everyone is Aging
A 43-year old in a retirement community?
ProAging features innovative tools for senior-serving professionals to better serve seniors, caregivers, and their families.
View Blog »
