The U.S. government’s 5-Star ratings of the nations nursing homes are in! While these results are not as glamorous as the Oscars or the Grammys… okay, they are not glamorous at all, but they are significantly more meaningful than entertainment awards, and they affect more of us much more directly. Currently, about 7.5% of Americans […]
Nursing Home Quality Ratings Updated Read More »
A Fayetteville, North Carolina, hospital is at risk of losing it’s funding from Medicaid and Medicare tonight in response to the death of a mentally ill patient.
Fayetteville Hospital Could Lose Federal Funding Read More »
Good news for disabled and elderly people who require personal care services: A federal judge has stopped North Carolina from ending services for some Medicaid recipients who receive in-home care. According to an article in the News & Observer, the state Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) had recently increased eligibility requirement for personal
Judge Halts Change to Medicaid Read More »
Here’s a good news story: The health-care overall championed by President Barack Obama’s administration has saved Medicare recipients about $1.5 billion since it went into effect in January 2011. This amounts to an average savings benefit to the elderly of about $569 per person. According to a story on Bloomberg.com: “Millions of Americans are receiving
Medicare Drug Discount Saves Elderly Billions Read More »
In The New York Times, reporter Jane Gross wrote a fascinating opinion piece about Medicare. She calls it the “dirty little secret of health care in America”: That while we assume that Medicare provides universal health care coverage for the elderly, what Medicare actually covers isn’t what recipients want or actually need. With all the
Does Medicare Fail the Elderly? Read More »
The New York Times published an eye-opening article about how some antipsychotic drugs given to the elderly are dangerous, and even potentially lethal. Nearly one in seven elderly nursing home residents, nearly all of them with dementia, are given powerful atypical antipsychotic drugs even though the medicines increase the risks of death and are not approved
Hazardous Antipsychotic Drugs Read More »
For years we’ve been telling you about the Nursing Home Compare 5-star ratings posted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The ratings help consumers evaluate the quality and safety of nursing homes across the country. Today, CMS has made three changes to Nursing Home Compare: Information about how consumers can file complaints
Exciting Changes to Nursing Homes Compare Website Read More »
How does your loved one’s nursing home measure up? The latest 5-star ratings are now available. The government’s Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have the latest nursing home ratings available on its website… the same ratings soon to be published by U.S. News & World Report magazine. The Five-Star Quality Rating System was created to
New Nursing Home Ratings Available Read More »
The Department of Health and Human Services released a report titled “Questionable Billing by Skilled Nursing Facilities.” The title says it all… but we’re still going to comment. In recent years, government analyses have discovered improprieties in the amount of Medicare dollars billed by–and paid to–to skilled nursing facilities (a general term that includes nursing
Report Questions Nursing Home Charges Read More »
Palliative care is treatment intended not to heal, but to relieve symptoms so that the patient feels better. Despite the fact that it is an important part of treatment, especially for people with incurable disorders, palliative care is not well understood by most people, including those who need it. For people with a terminal illness,
Role for Palliative Care in Dementia Read More »