Last year, Congress changed the way Medicare pays physicians, It scrapped a system that paid docs based largely on the number of procedures and tests they do, and instructed federal Medicare officials to come up with a design that rewards quality and value. Medicare has already moved in this direction for hospitals and health systems, and the new law was [...]
Public opinion surveys show that most Americans incorrectly think Medicare pays for long-term supports and services (LTSS). It does not. But should it? Should Congress add a long-term care benefit to the program’s current package of insurance for hospital care, doctor visits, and drugs? Three highly respected health researchers, Karen Davis, Amber Willink, and Cathy Schoen, think it should. In [...]
Older adults are getting too much medical treatment. No, I am not suggesting we ration treatment for seniors or empower the mythical death panels. Rather, the health system should replace aggressive but ultimately useless medical interventions with more care. This means rethinking the way we care for older adults with chronic disease. We should organize care around the goal of improving their quality of life rather than on [...]
If the government doesn’t act soon, nearly one-third of Medicare beneficiaries face a 50 percent increase in their Part B premiums for 2016, while more than two-thirds will pay no premium hike at all. Most beneficiaries will pay the same monthly premium next year as they paid this year--$104.90. But others making the same income will pay $159.30. And some [...]
One-third of nursing homes residents are admitted to the hospital at least once each year, and half of those admissions could be avoided. Preventing them could protect hundreds of thousands of older adults from potential harm and save Medicare billions of dollars. The problem is neither new nor surprising. But it is tough to fix. Last week, the federal Centers [...]
Medicare is the 1965 Ford Mustang of healthcare. It was cutting-edge back in the day. But, like that half-century old car, Medicare no longer runs very well and needs a remake. The real issue is not its finances, which is what most of Medicare’s 50th anniversary commentary is about. It’s about redesigning how it delivers care, which is what really [...]
Congressional Republicans agreed to a non-binding budget framework yesterday that would slow projected growth of Medicare, but not completely restructure the program as the House GOP wanted. House Republicans tried to use the budget process to fundamentally rewrite Medicare, turning it from an open-ended entitlement program to a model known as premium support. But the move was blocked by Senate [...]
The House yesterday easily approved some of the biggest changes to Medicare since Congress created the drug benefit a decade ago. While the measure still must be approved by the Senate and signed by President Obama (who supports it), it represents a significant shift in the way many seniors get—and pay for—their health care. The measure, known in Washington-speak as [...]
Medicare Advantage plans, the managed care programs that currently insure nearly one-third of all Americans over 65, are supposed to achieve two goals: Improving health outcomes by organizing care of older Americans and reducing costs. Those two goals can sometimes conflict, but a new study provides something of a roadmap for how plans can do both. The key, according to [...]
Medicare, which will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year, needs to be fixed. But if backers of reform frame that change primarily as a way to reduce federal spending, they are doomed to fail. The other day, former Republican senator Judd Gregg wrote a guest column in The Hill newspaper about a gathering of policy wonks at Dartmouth College aimed at reforming [...]