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.
Majority of health care leaders support public health care option, provider payment reform, and a national insurance exchange with standard-setting authority – 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.
A new report finds obesity epidemic increases in USA, Mississippi weighs in as heaviest state in America. – 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 appears cost-effective in older adults — study: Cost-effectiveness of Total Knee Arthroplasty in the United States. – 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 from AAFP, ACP and AOA — Represent more than 330,000 physicians, members treat majority of Medicare patients. – 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 percent of all US bankruptcies attributable to medical problems – Most victims are middle class, well-educated and have health insurance. – 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.
“Hidden Health Tax” for Family Health Coverage Climbed to $1,017 in 2008 – The “Hidden Health Tax” Is the Undisclosed Premium Surcharge that Pays for the Uncompensated Health Care Costs of the Uninsured. – 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’s strong performance in consumer satisfaction, access to care, and other areas suggests that many adults under age 65 would choose a public health insurance option if it were offered as part of health reform. – 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.
Home-based Diet and Exercise Intervention Can Improve Physical Function in Older Cancer Survivors. – A home-based program aimed at improving exercise and diet can lead to meaningful improvements in physical function among older long-term cancer survivors, according to the results of a study led by researchers from Duke University Medical Center and The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.
US Secretary Sebelius Highlights Two New Reports on Health Care Quality, Says Improving Quality is Key Component of Health Reform. – 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.
Avalere Health Finds New Plan to Reform Medicare Post-Acute and Long Term Care System Could Save U.S. Approximately $35 Billion Over Ten Years – 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.
Complications, death rates similar at bariatric surgery centers of excellence, other hospitals – Patients who undergo bariatric surgery at hospitals designated as centers of excellence do not appear to have lower mortality rates or lower rates of complications than those whose procedures are performed at other hospitals, according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Universal health insurance coverage may reduce persistent disparities in Americans from different racial, socioeconomic or ethnic groups. – Health care disparities in the U.S. have long been noted, with particular attention paid to the gaps separating racial and economic groups.
