E-mail this page to a friend!
Medicare & Medicaid News
Quality Data on Inpatient
Psychiatric Facilities Now Available to Seniors on Hospital Compare
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services continues to expand more information for seniors to help choose
best medical care
April 18, 2014 – Quality measures
from inpatient psychiatric facilities will be publicly reported on
Hospital Compare, a consumer-oriented website that provides
information on the quality of care hospitals are providing to their
patients, according to a news release yesterday by the Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Read more...
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
Is Link Between Cognitive Decline and Vitamin D
Deficiency in Seniors a Clue to Treatment?
Controlled trials are needed to determine whether
vitamin D supplementation can prevent cognitive decline
April 15, 2014 – Vitamin D deficiency and cognitive
impairment are common in senior citizens, but there isn't a lot of
conclusive research into whether there's a relationship between the two.
A new study out today, however, has found evidence of an association
between low vitamin D levels and cognitive decline in seniors. The lead
author is calling for clinical trials to see if vitamin D can prevent
cognitive decline.
Read more...
Caregiver & Elder Care News
Spouses Take on More Demanding Jobs as Caregiver Than Others, Finds New
Report
Tackle tough medical, nursing tasks; less likely to
get support from family, friends, health care professionals
April 14, 2014 - Spouses who are caregivers not
only perform many of the tasks that health care professionals do - a
range of medical/nursing tasks including medication management, wound
care, using meters and monitors, and more - but they are significantly
more likely to do so than other family caregivers, who are mostly adult
children.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Senior Women with
Diabetes Less Likely to Have Mammogram Despite Higher Risk
Researchers find low
socioeconomic status an additional obstacle to preventive care in
already disadvantaged population
April 14, 2014 –
Older women with diabetes are much likely to develop breast cancer and
less likely to survive the cancer, yet, researchers find these diabetic
women are 14 percent less likely to be screened for breast cancer
compared to women without diabetes.
Read more...
Exercise & Fitness for Senior Citizens
Senior Citizens Boost Mental Abilities with Exercise
Even in Old Age, Two Studies Say
Women over 70 increased size of learning area of
brain, second finds window to successfully fight dementia with exercise
lasts into old age
April 10, 2014 - It’s a good day for senior
citizens worried about dementia and diminishing mental abilities. Two
studies out today offer real hope. One says that regular exercise can
help senior women boost the size of the brain area used for memory and
learning. The other found that exercise after middle age seems to slow
dementia in old age and is most effective for those who are overweight.
The key point being it may never be too late to boost your mental
ability by exercising.
Read more...
Senior Citizen Politics
Brought to You by Your State
Government! |
Kansas Governor Asked to Veto Bill Putting State in
Charge of Medicare, Medicaid, Their Federal Funds
Wichita Eagle tries to stop this effort it calls a
“real and present danger”
April 10, 2014 – Many of America’s senior citizens
may not be aware of the threat posed to Medicare and senior health
benefits covered by Medicaid and the Affordable Care Are. Much of the
attack is happening in states and is below the radar of national media.
Actions by Republicans in Kansas provide a clear picture of the danger,
as explained in an editorial that appeared this week in the Wichita
Eagle.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Seniors See Colorectal Cancer Surgery Decline,
Mortality Rates Increase; Still Do Worse in Surgery
The good news is colon cancer surgery rates down and
survival rates up, even for elderly; researchers concerned with lack of
senior citizens in clinical trials
April 9, 2014 – Senior citizens age 65 and older
are the most likely to undergo colorectal cancer surgery and the
experience the worse outcomes than do younger patients. The good news is
the total number of colon cancer operations has decreased in the last
decade and mortality rates have improved.
Read more...
Aging News & Information
Senior Citizens See Risk of Stroke Linked to
Insomnia Diminish with Age
The risk was highest - up to eight times - among
insomniacs 18-34 years old
April 9, 2014 – These is almost never good news
about health for senior citizens that relates to getting older. It is an
accepted truth that the older you get the higher your risk of health
problems. But there really is good news for seniors, especially those
who have problems sleeping, for a new study that finds the risk of
having a stroke is much higher in people with insomnia but this risk
shrinks as we get older.
Read more...
Medicare & Medicaid News
Medicare Records on 880,000 Health
Care Providers Now Available for Online Download
Gives consumers unprecedented
transparency on the medical services physicians provide and how much
they are paid
April 9, 2014 – There is a lot more
– a whole lot more, actually – information available today to Medicare
beneficiaries who want detailed information on 880,000 distinct health
care providers who received $77 billion in Medicare payments in 2012,
under the Medicare Part B Fee-For-Service program.
Read more...
Medicare & Medicaid News
Anticipated Cut in Medicare
Advantage Plan Payments Becomes Marginal Increase by CMS
Health insurance lobby had fought
hard to avoid the cut, wanted payments to remain the same
April
7, 2014 - The highly anticipated change for 2015 to the rate paid to
private Medicare Advantage Plans was announced today and it has to be
viewed as a win for the health insurance lobby. The proposed rate
reduction of 1.9 percent proposed in February by the Centers for
Medicare and Medicaid Services became a marginal increase of .04 percent
for next year.
Read more...
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
Green Tea Found to Enhance Cognitive Ability:
Improves Memory, May Help Dementia
Subjects do much better on test after taking green
tea extract; can it treat dementia?
April 7, 2014 – Green tea extract enhances the
cognitive functions and in particular the working memory, say
researchers from the University of Basel,
Basel,
Switzerland, who claim to be the first to prove this benefit in green
tea. They see distant possibilities, too, for treating dementia.
Read more...
Features for Senior Citizens
Two Classes of Senior Citizens Emerge in Pew Study
of Technology Use by Older Adults
Editor's Note: An updated report on Older Adults and Technology Use
has been compiled by The Internet & American Life Project of the
Pew Research Center. Below is an overview of the main findings.
For the complete report or other sections see links below
this report.
By
Aaron Smith, Senior Researcher, Pew Research Center's Internet
Project
April 7, 2014 - America’s seniors have historically
been late adopters to the world of technology compared to
their younger compatriots, but their movement into digital
life continues to deepen, according to newly released data
from the Pew Research Center.
Read more...
Features for Senior Citizens
Senior Pushing 100 Gets National Honor for Service
to School for Children with Disabilities
Volunteer Thurman Haynes, 97, greets children as the arrive and
gets them to class safely
April 7, 2014 – A 97-year-old volunteer who has
been devoting over 80 hours of service a month at a school for
children with disabilities, Thurman Haynes of Jamestown, N.C., has been
chosen as the national winner in the Salute to Senior Service
competition sponsored by Home Instead, Inc.
Read more...
Medicare and Medicaid News
Decoding the High-Stakes Debate Over
Medicare Advantage Cuts
Final 2015 Medicare Advantage rates
are expected to be released Monday
By Jay Hancock, KHN Staff Writer
April 7, 2014 - Health insurers
often try to influence Washington through quiet persuasion in plush
offices. To fight potential government cuts for private Medicare plans,
however, they’ve hit the streets. The Obama administration has proposed
reducing what insurers collect for Medicare Advantage plans - HMOs and
PPOs, mainly - that cover about 15 million seniors. (Regular Medicare,
which still covers most seniors, pays doctors and hospitals directly.)
Read more...
Features for Senior Citizens
Grandmothers Often Eager to Help Mother of New
Grandchild But Seldom Cure Baby Blues
Married and single mothers suffer
higher rates of depression when they live with grandparents; not so for
unmarried living with partner
April
5, 2014 - Does living with grandparents ease
or worsen a mothers' baby blues? The answer appears to depend on the
mother's marital status, a new study from Duke University suggests.
Read more...
Medicare & Medicaid News
Medicare Physician Quality
Reporting, Use of Electronic Prescribing Show Increases
New report issued today compares
participation in 2011 and 2012
April 3, 2014 – Two key programs
aimed at improving service to seniors and the disabled in Medicare have
shown significant increases, according to the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS). This report, however, just includes data on the
increase from 2011 to 2012 in the systems – the Physician Quality
Reporting System and Electronic Prescribing (eRx).
Read more...
Senior Citizen Politics
Senior Advocates No
Happier with Ryan’s New GOP Budget Than Last Year’s
Old Medicare ideas attract
most attention – voucher system, later eligibility, and higher cost for
middle class
April
2, 2014 – Virtually all organizations that advocate for senior citizens,
Medicare or Social Security that issued statements on the Republican
FY2015 House Budget Committee Chairman Paul
Ryan’s were critical of the provisions impacting seniors. Most news
reports acknowledge his ideas were about the same as in his last budget
push, including a voucher system for Medicare, high age for joining
Medicare, higher cost for middle class seniors in Medicare.
Read more...
Aging News & Information
Record Number of Senior Citizens Completing Living
Wills, Little Impact on Deaths
Study suggests elderly Americans are completing
living wills and appointing health care surrogates more than ever before
April 2, 2014 - A record number of elderly people
are completing living wills to guide end-of-life medical treatments – up
from 47 percent in 2000 to 72 percent in 2010 – according to new
research from the University of Michigan and the Veterans Affairs Ann
Arbor Healthcare System.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Breast Cancer Screening Strategy in JAMA May Be
Deadly for Many Women
Two medical groups continue to recommend annual
mammograms beginning at age 40
April 2, 2014 – Not all physicians are in total
agreement with a report in the Journal of the American Medical
Association (JAMA) that raises new questions about mammograms. At
present, breast cancer screening based primarily on risk - as discussed
in the
JAMA
article - would miss the overwhelming majority of breast cancers
present in women and result in thousands of unnecessary deaths each
year, according to a statement from two medical groups closely
associated with mammograms.
Read more...
Aging News & Information
Marriage Linked to Lower Heart Risk – Not So Much
for Seniors, Says Large Study
Marriage linked to lower risks for several
cardiovascular diseases in study of 3.5+ million adults; much lower for
those under 50
April 1, 2014 – A very large national study has
found that married people are five percent less likely to have any
vascular disease than are single people. The surprise to the researchers
is the big gap between older people and young adults. Those 50 and
younger have 12 percent lower odds of vascular disease. But, seniors are
not as lucky. Those marrieds 61 and older are only 4 percent less likely to have
vascular disease.
Read more...
Sex and Romance for Senior Citizens
Older Men Finding Sex Life Gets
Better by Lowering Their Cholesterol
Rutgers study shows statins improve
erectile function in men with cardiovascular disease
March 31, 2014 - A new study is
giving hope to older men concerned about the effects of
cholesterol-lowering medications on their sexual health. The research,
conducted at Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School,
found that statin medication prescribed to lower cholesterol and
decrease the chance of heart attack and stroke, also improves a man’s
erectile function.
Read more...
Alzheimer's, Dementia & Mental Health
Cognitive Decline in Older Men Linked to Poor Sleep
It was the quality of sleep that predicted future
cognitive decline in this study, not the quantity
March 31, 2014 - A new study of older men found a
link between poor sleep quality and the development of cognitive decline
over three to four years. Results show that higher levels of fragmented
sleep and lower sleep efficiency were associated with a 40 to 50 percent
increase in the odds of clinically significant decline in executive
function, which was similar in magnitude to the effect of a five-year
increase in age.
Read more...
Aging News & Information
Hearing Problems Make Senior
Citizens More Introverted, Withdrawn
Study points to the importance of
acknowledging and treating hearing loss among the elderly
March 31, 2014 – A study of senior
citizens between the ages of 80 and 98 reports that impaired hearing
causes some serious social problems. Old people have a natural tendency
to become less outgoing as they age, but it they have hearing problems,
this condition becomes even worse.
Read more...
Social Security News
New Social Security Unit in N.Y. to
Help Detect Fraud in Disability Cases
Group of specialized disability
examiners to identify trends, develop strategy for use nationwide
March 31, 2014 – A new unit within
the Social Security Administration is being created in New York to
identify frauds and detect trends that can help the agency to identify
potential fraud in future disability cases across the U.S.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Millions of Seniors Achieved Goal for Blood Pressure
Overnight, Reports JAMA
Seniors age 60 and up were focus of 2014 guidelines
that set treatment for hypertension at 150-over-90 mm Hg, rather than
140/90
March 30, 2014 – A new estimate projects that 13.5
million U.S. adults – primarily seniors age 60 or older – will would now
be considered as having achieved their goal for blood pressure, as
defined by the 2014 BP guidelines announced last December. Almost six
million adults can relax, too, since they will no longer be classified
as needing hypertension medication, according to a JAMA study
released online to coincide with the 2014 American College of Cardiology
Scientific Sessions.
Read more...
Social Security Q&A
Social Security Benefits Deducted When You Earn Too
Much Can Be Recouped
This week’s Social Security Q&A explains something
few beneficiaries understand
March
28, 2014 – Earning over the limit is a common problem for Social
Security beneficiaries and probably few understands the actions the
agency takes to help them “recoup” benefits deducted before reaching
full retirement. It is explained in this week’s Social Security Q&A. It
also looks at how some can get Medicare coverage before age 65.
Read more...
Senior Citizen Politics
Congress Retreats to Temporary Fix
to Medicare Doc Payments for 17th Time
Mary Agnes Carey, KHN, and Emily
Ehtridge, CQ Roll Call, explain the drama in Health on the Hill
"The
American
Medical
Association
is
extremely
disappointed
in
today's
House
action
to
give
up
on
SGR
repeal...
|
March 28, 2014 - For the 17th time,
Congress is on the verge of approving yet another temporary fix to the
Medicare physician payment formula, according to Mary Agnes Carey,
Kaiser Health News. “Known as the Sustainable Growth Rate, or the SGR,
the formula has repeatedly called for cuts in Medicare physician
payments, but every time that deadline comes up, Congress comes through
with yet another sort term patch,” she says.
Read more...
Exercise & Fitness for Senior Citizens
New Formula for Peak Heart Rate During Exercise
Developed for Older Men, Women
Everybody's peak heart rate declines with age, but
decline is more gradual in women
March 27, 2014 – A study of more than 25,000 stress
tests by older people convinced researchers that the current formula for
determining a person’s peak exercise heart rate had to be changed. It
was used by doctors for decades to diagnose heart conditions but the
study says it was flawed because it failed to recognize differences
between men and women, particularly as they age.
Read more...
Nutrition, Vitamins & Supplements for Seniors
More Severe Heart Disease Found in Patients with
Vitamin D Deficiency
Lower levels of vitamin D predict extent of coronary
artery disease; diet rich in vitamin D and moderate exercise outdoors
recommended
March 27, 2014 - A low level of vitamin D is an
independent risk factor for heart disease. It not only increases the
odds of developing coronary artery disease, it also seems to be
associated with more severity of the heart disease, according to research
being presented at the American College of Cardiology's 63rd Annual
Scientific Session.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
Macular Degeneration Now Leading Cause of Blindness in Rich Nations;
Poor Vision Drops
Macular degeneration has become
leading cause of blindness in rich countries as
rates of blindness in developed world improve
dramatically in 20 years
March
26, 2014 – Rates of blindness and impaired eyesight
have plummeted over the past 20 years in the
developed world. But the bad news – especially for
senior citizens and women – is that macular
degeneration has replaced cataract as the leading
cause of blindness in wealthy countries, where women
were more likely to be blind or to have poor vision
than men in all years studied.
Read more...
Health & Medicine for Senior Citizens
New
Cancer Drug ZL105 Ten Times More Effective Fighting Some Cancers:
Game-Changer
May be ten times more effective in
treating ovarian, colon, melanoma, renal, and some breast cancers
March 26, 2014 - A game-changer
in the battle against cancer may just be a new drug called ZL105, which
researchers say can manipulate the body’s natural signalling and energy
systems, allowing the body to attack and shut down cancerous cells. They
foresee a revolution in cancer treatment that may lead to a dramatic
improvement in cancer survival rates.
Read more...
Alzheimer's, Dementia & Mental Health
Diabetes Drug Shows Promise in Reducing Alzheimer's,
Restoring Memory
in Test Mice
Potential as a test for diagnosis of AD and a therapy
for the disease; improved learning and memory in tests
March 25, 2014 - Diabetic patients taking the drug,
pramlintide, may be ahead of many of us in the battle against
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and preserving our memory. A new study found
the synthetic version of amylin reduces amyloid-beta peptides, a major
component of Alzheimer's in the brain. It also improves learning and
memory, according to researchers from Boston University School of
Medicine (BUSM).
Read more...
