Kaiser Health News: Baby Boomers Set Another Trend – More Golden Years in Poorer Health
After the last of the baby boomers become fully eligible for Medicare, the federal health program can expect significantly higher costs in 2030 both because of the high number of beneficiaries and because many are expected to be significantly less healthy than previous generations. The typical Medicare beneficiary who is 65 or older then will more likely be obese, disabled and suffering from chronic conditions such as heart disease and high blood pressure than those in 2010, according to a report by the University for Southern California’s Schaeffer Center of Health Policy and Economics. — Lisa Gillespie (Dec. 17)
The New Yorker: Health Care’s Prince Conundrum
The costs of care for the privately insured vary from town to town just as crazily as they do for the publicly insured. But the patterns are strikingly different. The most expensive places for Medicare are not the most expensive places for private insurers. In fact, there was essentially zero correlation between where a city ranks in Medicare spending and where it ranks in private-insurance spending—even when you only consider people undergoing the exact same procedure. — Atul Gawande (Dec. 18)
The New York Times: Still in a Crib, Yet Being Given Antipsychotics
Cases like that of Andrew Rios, in which children age 2 or younger are prescribed psychiatric medications to address alarmingly violent or withdrawn behavior, are rising rapidly, data shows. Many doctors worry that these drugs, designed for adults and only warily accepted for certain school-age youngsters, are being used to treat children still in cribs despite no published research into their effectiveness and potential health risks for children so young. — Alan Schwarz (Dec. 10)
FYI: Mental Healthy Parity Rule Goes to U.S. Office of Management and Budget
A final rule on the way Medicaid managed care plans, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and state alternative benefit plans will offer mental health coverage is now at the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. It first came out in March. — POLITICO (Dec. 21)
REPORT: U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, “Bipartisan Chronic Care Working Group Policy Options Document”
The U.S. Senate Committee on Finance released a 30-page report of more than 20 proposals it is considering to improve long-term care and reduce costs for Medicare beneficiaries. In terms of next steps: “While we are committed to tackling this urgent matter head on, the Committee has repeatedly stated its intention to proceed thoughtfully,” the report states. — U.S. Senate Committee on Finance (Dec. 18)
REPORT: Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, “State Healthy Aging Workshop (July 29, 2015): Summary Report”
The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), National Association of States United for Aging and Disabilities (NASUAD), and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP), hosted a State Healthy Aging Workshop. State officials developed action plans for healthy aging that achieve shared goals of the state public health agency and the state aging agency. This report provides an overview of the state team planning outcomes and an evaluation of the workshop activities and presentations. — ASTHO, NASUAD and ODPHP (Dec. 18)
REPORT: National Quality Forum, “Addressing Performance Measure Gaps in Home and Community-Based Services to Supporting Community Living: Synthesis of Evidence and Environmental Scan – Interim Report”
The Addressing Performance Measure Gaps in Home and Community-Based Services to Support Community Living Project aims to develop a shared understanding and approach to assessing the quality of home and community-based services (HCBS) and to identify gaps in current HCBS quality measurement as well as high-leverage opportunities for measure development. Understanding the quality of HCBS becomes increasingly important as government funding shifts from institutional to community-based settings, and demand for HCBS rises. — National Quality Forum (Dec. 18)
REPORT: State of New Hampshire, “Joint Task Force for the Response to the Heroin and Opioid Epidemic in New Hampshire – Interim Report”
A joint legislative task force to examine heroin and opioid abuse made recommendations last week, including some that lawmakers want to take up when the 2016 legislative session starts next month. The panel expects votes on expedited legislation in both chambers by January 21… Separately, governors of the six New England states recently sent a letter urging Congress to pass legislation that would expand the number of qualifying practitioners who can prescribe addiction treatment medication. — (Dec. 15)
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