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.
Delaying post-surgical radiation increases risk of breast cancer recurrence in older women – Older women who have had breast cancer surgery have a greater risk of the cancer returning if they delay their post-surgical radiation treatment, report Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists.
IOM report declares high blood pressure a neglected disease — Calls for strategies to change Americans’ lifestyles and diets to curb hypertension – Public health officials and health care providers need to step up their efforts to reduce Americans’ increasing rates of high blood pressure and better treat those with the condition.
Diabetes cases to double and costs to triple by 2034 – 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. Treatment delay, different care (via receipt of fewer diagnostic tests), and decreased health literacy are possible mechanisms. – 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.
Study outlines strategies to test new payment models for health care – A new RAND Corporation study outlines methods that might be used to test a novel payment system for medical care that would provide doctors, hospitals and other health providers a set fee for treating an ailment such as hip replacement surgery.
Retail medical clinics can provide care at lower cost, similar quality as other settings – 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.
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.
