Hospitals in Sacramento, California, and around the country are taking steps to help homeless people find housing. Doing so, they say, will limit unnecessary ER visits and reduce wasteful health care spending.
The United States spends 40% more per patient than other developed countries but suffers the worse overall health outcomes. There is general consensus that a major solution lies in better managing and preventing adult chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart failure.
While there have been significant strides in providing frontline clinicians with quality information, these clinicians still lack the tools they need to play an active role in controlling the costs of the care they provide. To date, only small steps have been taken at most health care systems (for example, clarifying the costs of specific tests during the test-ordering process), and new clinical analytics systems that offer...
The Senate has quietly and unanimously passed a bill that would improve some Medicare benefits for people with chronic disease. The measure would do many good things but the most important is that it would take important steps toward breaking down the wall between medical treatment and non-medical supports and services in Medicare, beginning a process that would make it much easier for frail seniors to receive the right care when they need it.
Lawmakers and telehealth advocates were predictably pleased with the Senate’s passage of bipartisan legislation that would extend telehealth benefits to several patient populations battling chronic illnesses. Following another failed attempt to repeal-and-replace the Affordable Care Act, the CHRONIC Care Act of 2017 unanimously passed through the Senate Floor on Wednesday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that three out of four Americans 65 and older have multiple chronic conditions. Engaging people with co-morbidities is often a way to improve health conditions, but the HealthMine survey found that’s not the case for many in the Medicare population.
The House Ways and Means Committee unanimously passed legislation that would make telehealth a core benefit in Medicare Advantage plans. Representative Diane Black stated, “This bill is about upgrading current law to not just allow but actually to encourage the use of telehealth technology to bring the best healthcare possible to our seniors, while also working to address those skyrocketing healthcare costs.”
Provider groups and health IT advocacy organizations are generally pleased with a proposal issued by federal officials to expand Medicare coverage for telehealth services under the 2018 physician fee schedule, but several are pushing for even more flexibility to integrate connected health technology.
The movement toward value-based care has been the major focus of the public and private sectors as a means to control cost and improve health care quality and outcomes. These value-based models are creating more urgent financial incentives and pressures for the health care system to think more about what creates and maintains health, rather than just treating illness.
Getting patients with chronic illnesses to take their prescribed medications so they stay well can be a big challenge for doctors. There are many reasons why an estimated 80% of patients with chronic conditions don’t stick to their care management plans, including medication regimens, according to PatientEngagementHIT.
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