Medicare News and Research

RSS

Study: Air pollution can fuel chronic kidney disease

There is good evidence that polluted air increases the risk of respiratory problems such as asthma -- as well as organ inflammation, worsening of diabetes and other life-threatening conditions.

25 Aug 2018

ACA Medicaid expansion linked to decline in uninsured hospitalizations for cardiovascular events

Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act was associated with a decline in the proportion of uninsured hospitalizations for major cardiovascular events such as heart attack, stroke and heart failure.

24 Aug 2018

Physical therapy for older adults may lead to fewer fall-related ED revisits

Falls are the leading cause of illness and death among Americans aged 65 and older. In 2014, some 2.8 million older adults visited the emergency department (ED) for a fall-related injury. And over time, the ED visit rate for falls among older adults has grown to 68.8 per 1,000 older adults (as of 2010).

22 Aug 2018

Economic burden of breast cancer can continue long after diagnosis

The financial fallout from breast cancer can last years after diagnosis, particularly for those with lymphedema, a common side effect from treatment, causing cumulative and cascading economic consequences for survivors, their families, and society, a study led by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers suggests.

22 Aug 2018

After-hours telemedicine can lead to fewer hospitalizations and more savings

When doctors could be reached via telemedicine to decide whether a patient in a skilled nursing facility (SNF) should be hospitalized, 29% of the patients evaluated avoided a hospital visit, saving $1.55 million over the course of a year, according to results reported in the current issue of The American Journal of Managed Care.

20 Aug 2018

The man who sold America on vitamin D — and profited in the process

Dr. Michael Holick's enthusiasm for vitamin D can be fairly described as extreme.

20 Aug 2018

Rush's health care IT leaders reach White House

Information technology has changed the world, and now it's changing health care in dramatic and fast-moving ways. Rush is a nationally-recognized leader in using IT to achieve better outcomes, lower costs and improve the patient experience.

17 Aug 2018

Stroke patients appear to receive better care at teaching hospitals with less chance of readmission

Stroke patients appear to receive better care at teaching hospitals with less of a chance of landing back in a hospital during the early stages of recovery, according to new research from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.

17 Aug 2018

ACR expresses concerns on step therapy in a recent meeting with HSS Secretary

Yesterday, the American College of Rheumatology met with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar for a productive discussion about the rheumatology community's concerns with a new policy that will allow Medicare Advantage plans to utilize step therapy in Medicare Part B.

17 Aug 2018

Hospitals battle for control over fast-growing heart-valve procedure

When Medicare in 2011 agreed to pay for a revolutionary procedure to replace leaky heart valves by snaking a synthetic replacement up through blood vessels, the goal was to offer relief to the tens of thousands of patients too frail to endure open-heart surgery, the gold standard.

17 Aug 2018

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What the Health?’ See you in court!

A federal district court judge in Texas has set Sept. 10 as the date for oral arguments in a case filed by Republican state attorneys general and governors from 20 states.

17 Aug 2018

Restoring blood flow may be linked to longer survival in patients with critical limb ischemia

Treatments that restore blood flow to the lower limbs of people with a serious circulation condition may be cheaper and associated with longer survival, than amputation according to new research in Journal of the American Heart Association, the Open Access Journal of the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

15 Aug 2018

Feds urge states to encourage cheaper plans off the exchanges

For those who make too much money to qualify for health insurance subsidies on the individual market, there may be no Goldilocks moment when shopping for a plan. No choice is just right.

14 Aug 2018

Lower rates of Medicare preventive care visits found in racial, ethnic minority older adults

Medicare patients nationwide have low rates of preventive care visits – with the lowest rates found in older adults of minority race/ethnicity, reports a study in the September issue of Medical Care. The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

14 Aug 2018

Study finds quality of doctor-patient discussions about lung cancer screening to be 'poor'

Although national guidelines advise doctors to discuss the benefits and harms of lung cancer screening with high-risk patients because of a high rate of false positives and other factors, those conversations aren't happening the way they should be, according to a study by researchers from the University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.

14 Aug 2018

Medical nutrition therapy provided by RDNs benefits patients with chronic kidney disease

According to a new review, approximately 30 million Americans – about 15 percent of adults – have chronic kidney disease, a number that is expected to increase in the next 20 years due to rising obesity rates and longer lifespans, but the majority of chronic kidney disease patients aren't receiving potentially lifesaving treatment.

13 Aug 2018

Trump administration sinks teeth into paring down drug prices, on 5 key points

Three months after President Donald Trump announced his blueprint to bring down drug prices, administration officials have begun putting some teeth behind the rhetoric.

10 Aug 2018

Medicare to overhaul ACOs but critics fear fewer participants

Accountable care organizations were among the key initiatives of the Affordable Care Act, designed to help control soaring Medicare costs.

9 Aug 2018

Older kidney disease patients on dialysis have higher dementia risk

Older kidney disease patients who are sick enough to require the blood-filtering treatment known as dialysis are at high risk of dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, according to a study led by scientists at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

9 Aug 2018

Lax oversight leaves surgery center regulators and patients in the dark

The first man died in April 2014. Another died later that month. Then on July 18 of that year, a woman was rushed to a hospital where she was told she was lucky to be alive.

9 Aug 2018