By Susan Jaffe – Millions of older adults can start signing up for private policies offering Medicare drug and medical coverage for 2020. But many risk wasting money and even jeopardizing their health care due to changes in Medicare’s plan finder, its most popular website.
Read More
By Susan Jaffe – Air conditioners for people with asthma, healthy groceries, rides to medical appointments and home-delivered meals may be among the new benefits added to Medicare Advantage coverage when new federal rules take effect next year.
By Susan Jaffe – Under a new federal law, hospitals across the country must now alert Medicare patients when they are getting observation care and why they were not admitted — even if they stay in the hospital a few nights.
By Susan Jaffe – A federal judge has accepted Medicare’s plans to try once more to correct a commonly held misconception that beneficiaries are eligible for coverage for physical and occupational therapy and other skilled care only if their health is improving.
By Susan Jaffe – Despite interventions by Medicare officials, the number of appeals from health care providers and patients challenging denied claims continues to spiral, increasing the backlog of cases and delaying many decisions well beyond the timeframes set by law, according to a government study released on June 9th.
By Susan Jaffe – Looking for ways to save money and improve care, Medicare officials are returning to an old-fashioned idea: house calls. But the experiment, called Independence at Home, is more than a nostalgic throwback to the way medicine was practiced decades ago when the doctor arrived at the patient’s door carrying a big black bag.