Medicare

Medicare is a national health insurance program created and administered by the federal government in the United States to address the medical needs of older American citizens. Medicare is available to U.S. citizens 65 years of age and older and some people with disabilities under age 65.

Medicare - most related articles:

- Medicare serves elderly more effectively - 4.1
- Utilizing health information technology - 4.1
- Reducing drug funding to Medicare patients raises questions - 3.8
- Medicare will not pay for extra care - 3.5
- 30% of health spending yield no benefit to patients - 3.4
- US improving health care quality - 3.2
- Australian Govt should allow GPs to order MRI scans for patients - 3.1
- Physicians accepting fewer patients with health insurance - 2.9
- Urgent need for health care reform in US - 2.7
- Medicare patients lead to long term institutionalization in a nursing home - 2.7

Medicare articles

30% of health spending yield no benefit to patients
House Democratic Caucus Chairman John B. Larson (CT) released the following statement on the resignation of Dr. Donald Berwick as Administrator of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Medicare patients lead to long term institutionalization in a nursing home
Confirming many elderly patients' worst fears, a national study has shown that being hospitalized for an acute event, such as a stroke or hip fracture, can lead to long-term institutionalization in a nursing home.

Door-to-balloon time is 90 min in 91% of heart attack patients in US
The period from hospital arrival to angioplasty is called "door-to-balloon" time (D2B). A new study showed that 91 percent of patients were treated in a D2B time of less than 90 minutes in 2010, compared with 44 percent in 2005.

Reducing drug funding to Medicare patients raises questions
The lack of financial assistance to cover the cost of drugs to Medicare beneficiaries could result in an additional 18,000 patients discontinuing one or more prescriptions for essential drugs a year and others to not take their required medications regularly.

Physicians accepting fewer patients with health insurance
There is a drop in physicians' acceptance of health insured patients in past years in US. As a result, insured patients could face new obstacles to receiving the medical attention they need, and overall access to health care could actually contract. As required under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, millions of people will soon be added to the ranks of the insured. However, this rapid expansion of coverage is colliding with a different, potentially problematic trend that could end up hampering access to health care.

Supportive of intent of ACO proposed rule, ACP expresses concern
In a 10-page letter addressed to Donald Berwick, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, ACP today said: The ACP strongly supports the intent of the proposed rule, and believes that an ACO model has the potential of supporting such important care delivery goals as enhancing quality, efficiency, integration, and patient-centeredness.

Health reform to make health insurance affordable for all
Ninety percent of American families living above the federal poverty level will be able to afford health insurance under the Affordable Care Act, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report by Jonathan Gruber and Ian Perry of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Low health literacy linked to higher rate of death in heart failure patients
An examination of health literacy (such as understanding basic health information) among managed care patients with heart failure, a condition that requires self-management, found that nearly one in five have low health literacy, which was associated with a higher all-cause risk of death.

Nursing home closures clustered in poor, minority areas
Nursing home closures eliminated about 5 percent of available beds between 1998 and 2008, with closures concentrated in minority and poor communities in US.

Readmission rate has increased for heart failure patients
An analysis of Medicare data from 1993 through 2006 for older patients hospitalized for heart failure indicates that along with a decrease in hospital length of stay, the rate of in-hospital and 30-day mortality has decreased, while the rate of hospital readmission and discharge to skilled nursing facilities has increased, according to a study in the June 2 issue of JAMA.

Diabetes spending will be triple in US
In the next 25 years, spending on diabetes will almost triple, rising from $113 billion to $336 billion, even with no increase in the prevalence of obesity.

Uninsured Americans have a higher mortality rate after trauma
Americans without health insurance appear more likely to die following admission to the hospital for trauma than those with health care coverage, revealed by researchers.

Retail medical clinics can provide quality care at lower cost
Retail medical clinics located in pharmacies and other stores can provide care for routine illnesses at a lower cost and similar quality as offered in physician offices, urgent care centers or emergency departments, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

Urgent need for health care reform in US
US individuals should have a choice of public and private health plans, believe US health care leaders. They strongly support central components of health reform such as innovative provider payment reform and a national insurance health exchange with strong standard-setting authority.

Individual health insurance not affordable in US
The individual health insurance market is not a viable option for the majority of uninsured adults in US, a new report from The Commonwealth Fund finds.

Obesity increased in USA, obesity policies are failing
Adult obesity rates increased in 23 states of USA and did not decrease in a single state in the past year, according to F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America 2009, a report released by the Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).

Total knee replacement is cost effective
Total knee replacement (arthroplasty) appears to be a cost-effective procedure for older adults with advanced osteoarthritis in the US Medicare, revealed by researchers.

Call for primary care reform, US
Leaders of three US organizations representing nearly a third of a million physicians today visited Capitol Hill offices to express their continued concern for America's patients who do not have access to primary care physicians.

Over 60% of US bankruptcies due to medical incidents
In 2007, before the current economic downturn, an American family filed for bankruptcy in the aftermath of illness every 90 seconds; three-quarters of them were insured. Over 60% of all bankruptcies in the United States in 2007 were driven by medical incidents.

$1017 surcharge for health care costs of uninsured, US
The so-called "hidden health tax" for family health coverage grew to $1,017 in 2008 according to a report released today by the consumer health organization Families USA.

Medicare serves elderly more effectively
Elderly Medicare beneficiaries are more satisfied with their health care, and experience fewer problems accessing and paying for care, than Americans with employer-sponsored insurance (ESI), according to a study by Commonwealth Fund researchers published today on the Health Affairs Web site.

Two New Reports on Health Care Quality, US
At a speech before the AFSCME Nurses Conference Secretary Kathleen Sebelius discussed two new HHS reports on the quality of health care in America and challenged hospitals to work to reduce health care associated infections.

US Universal health insurance might not save many lives
A new analysis suggests that universal health insurance might not save many adult lives - or any - if the United States actually puts it into place.

New Medicare health plan would save $35 billion
Saying the opportunity now exists for the Obama Administration and Congress to both enhance U.S. seniors' care choices as well as save approximately $35 billion over ten years by adopting a new Medicare post-acute and long term care reform plan, the nation's leading long term care advocacy organizations today warned any broad-based reform of the nation's health care system in the months ahead will be incomplete without including long term and post-acute care.

Universal health insurance may narrow gaps in health care, US
Health care disparities in the U.S. have long been noted, with particular attention paid to the gaps separating racial and economic groups.

Australia to access information on individual patients records
Australian government is taking a bold step in legislating to gain access to the private health records of all Australians.

3 point plan to save money on insurance
Switching from brand names to generics is a great way to save money on food and clothes, but when it comes to insurance, consumers need to make well-informed decisions prior to altering coverage or changing companies.

Health insurance essential for people's health and well being
The evidence shows more clearly than ever that having health insurance is essential for people's health and well-being, and safety-net services are not enough to prevent avoidable illness, worse health outcomes, and premature death, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

Health spending growing faster than economic growth
Health spending in the United States grew 6.1 percent in 2007, to $2.2 trillion or $7,421 per person. This was the slowest rate of growth since 1998 and 0.6 of a percentage point lower than the growth of 6.7 percent in 2006, according to a report by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

2 new CBO reports on health care issues
US' Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is releasing two volumes that focus on health care issues: Key Issues in Analyzing Major Health Insurance Proposals and Budget Options, Volume 1: Health Care.

Nursing homes in US with star quality rating system
For the first time in history, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of US released quality ratings for each of 15,800 nursing homes that participate in Medicare or Medicaid.

Medicare will not pay for extra care
New US federal regulations to restrict Medicare payments to hospitals for the extra care required to treat patients harmed by certain preventable infections and medical errors go into effect on Wednesday, October 1.

Colorectal cancer deaths are down in US
New data revealing decreasing trends in cancer deaths in the United States overall, and in colorectal cancer deaths in particular, highlight the remarkable benefits of colorectal cancer screening tests, but the lifesaving potential of these tests is unrealized for many Americans, according to experts from the American College of Gastroenterology.

US improving health care quality
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issuing more information on special focus facilities to better equip beneficiaries, their families, and caregivers to make informed decisions and stimulate robust improvements in nursing homes having not improved their quality of care.

Diabetes increasing among older Americans
The prevalence of diabetes mellitus is growing worldwide. Consequently, there has been increased emphasis on primary and secondary prevention of diabetes. The annual number of Americans older than 65 newly diagnosed with diabetes increased by 23 percent between 1994 to 1995 and 2003 to 2004, according to a report in the January 28 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Australian Govt should allow GPs to order MRI scans for patients
The Australian Medical Association (AMA) has written to Health Minister, Nicola Roxon, urging her to implement the previous Government's policy to allow GPs to order Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans for their patients. Prior to last year's election, it was announced that GPs would be able to directly refer patients for a Medicare-funded MRI scan of the knee or, where Multiple Sclerosis is suspected, of the brain.

Utilizing health information technology
Mike Leavitt, Secretary of Health and Human Services, USA, highlighted benefits of utilizing health information technology in his statement regarding Medicare Physician Payment Legislation and Health Information Technology.

37 Medicare articles listed above.

Subscribe to Health News by Email






What is Medicare
Medicare is a national health insurance program created and administered by the federal government in the United States to address the medical needs of older American citizens. Medicare is available to U.S. citizens 65 years of age and older and some people with disabilities under age 65.

List health news, Health organizations, Health news world, Glossary, Best health articles, Featured     Go to top

The information provided on Health Newstrack is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between a patient/site visitor and his/her physician. We comply with the HONcode principles for trustworthy health information, and Health News Track is hon code accredited, verify here.
About us, Site map Privacy policy, Disclaimer
© 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 HealthNewsTrack.com
2.89