New bill would give CMS more tools to address obesity in older adults
By
Kristen Fischer
Jul 26, 2023
The Gerontological Society of America gave legislators a thumbs-up for reintroducing the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act of 2023 last week. The legislation would give people on Medicare access to more tools...
Starting Medicare not linked to major increases in chronic condition diagnoses
By
Kristen Fischer
Feb 09, 2024
Receiving Medicare coverage at age 65 years gives more people access to care, but it doesn’t necessarily help more people receive diagnoses for chronic diseases when they age into the program, according...
Older adults leave home for healthcare around 3 weeks a year
By
Kristen Fischer
Jan 23, 2024
Older adults receive healthcare outside of their homes an average total of three weeks a year (or 20.7 days), according to a study published Monday in Annals of Internal Medicine.
Relaxed regulations lead to spike in telehealth use, nursing homes report
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 12, 2020
Continued telehealth expansion under Medicare will be good for residents’ well-being, and may help administrators keep pace with other healthcare sectors, according to the Columbia University School...
Rural seniors with dementia have longer nursing home stays, study finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Oct 23, 2020
Rural Medicare recipients with Alzheimer’s and related dementias have longer nursing home stays and shorter survival time following diagnosis than their urban peers, investigators say.
LTC visitor data: Home health, hospice care held steady while family visits plummeted
By
Diane Eastabrook
May 04, 2022
An analysis of sign-ins at 6,000 SNFs and senior living facilities found that third-party care such as home health visits remained consistent during the pandemic, while family visits were curtailed.
Few Medicare recipients enroll in cardiac rehab, despite expanded benefits
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 11, 2021
Cardiac rehab participation rose among Medicare recipients with heart failure after coverage expansion in 2014, but the numbers remain abysmally low at less than 10%, a new study has found.
CMS discharge program isn’t reaching those with highest readmission risks: study
By
Kristen Fischer
Mar 22, 2024
A new report took a deeper dive to see if the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ transitional care management (TCM) program is reaching those most at risk. Even though the program is designed to...
Criticism, confusion and hope: new Alzheimer’s drug receives messy welcome
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 15, 2021
Clinicians’ responses to the controversial approval of Aduhelm range between excitement and disapproval, with questions abounding on how to advise patients on treatment and the cost to patients and...