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Medicare Program Fighting Chronic Illness Draws
100,000 Volunteers
Diabetes, congestive heart failure account for 75% of
Medicare costs
Feb. 3, 2006 - More than 100,000 Medicare
beneficiaries are now participating in the voluntary Medicare Health
Support programs designed to reduce health risks and improve the quality
of life for chronically ill senior citizens, the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services announced today.
With more than 100,000 people with Medicare
already participating, we expect to learn about how we can support the
best possible quality of care for our beneficiaries with chronic
conditions, said CMS Administrator Mark B. McClellan.
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Medicare Drug Program |
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Chronic conditions are a leading cause of illness,
disability and death among Medicare beneficiaries and account for a
disproportionate share of health care expenditures.
For example, about 14 percent of Medicare
beneficiaries have congestive heart failure, but they account for 43
percent of Medicare spending.
About 18 percent of Medicare beneficiaries have
diabetes, yet they account for 32 percent of Medicare spending.
Commonly, beneficiaries who live with multiple
chronic conditions have heavy self-care burdens and experience poor
health outcomes, increased costs and diminished quality of life, despite
the best efforts of their physicians and other health care
professionals.
There is evidence that self-care support, education
and assistance in coordinating care for people with these conditions can
be effective in improving clinical outcomes, reducing their healthcare
costs and improving participant and provider satisfaction.
Medicare Health Support connects program
participants with specially trained health professionals. The eight
pilot programs offer guidance and other support to help these
chronically ill beneficiaries manage their health, adhere to their
physicians plans of care and reduce their health risks. The
organizations' interventions include personalized care plans, the use of
biometric monitoring devices (for weight, blood pressure and pulse), 24
hour telephonic nurse access and group education and support sessions.
Congress created the Medicare Health Support
programs as part of the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and
Modernization Act in December 2003. The pilots were announced in
December 2004.
Medicare Health Support is an innovative approach
to care that represents a key priority for the future of Medicare, said
McClellan. We are committed to improving the quality of care and
quality of life for chronically ill beneficiaries, leading to fewer
complications and overall health care cost savings.
Using historical claims data, CMS identified
beneficiaries in the pilot regions who are candidates for Medicare
Health Support. More than 160,000 beneficiaries have been invited to
participate in these programs, which began operations between August
2005 and January 2006.
The first programs have been operational less than
six months and the positive response from beneficiaries, their
caregivers and physicians has been extremely positive. Medicare Health
Support programs are operating in the following regions:
● Oklahoma (LifeMasters Supported Selfcare,
Inc.) started August 1, 2005
● Washington , DC & Maryland (American Healthways, Inc.) started
August 1, 2005
● Western Pennsylvania (Health Dialog Services Corporation) started
August 15, 2005
● Mississippi (McKesson Health Solutions, LLC) started August 22,
2005
● Northwest Georgia (CIGNA Healthcare) started September 12, 2005
● Illinois (Aetna Health Management, LLC) started September 1, 2005
● Central Florida (Green Ribbon Healthsm) started November 1, 2005
● Tennessee (XLHealth Corporation, Inc.) started January 16, 2006
More information about the program is available
online at
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/CCIP/.
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