CAREGIVERS USA NEWS

Vol. I, No. 6
December 9, 2002

STUDY FINDS NO GOOD NEWS FOR RETIREES
A study of major employers finds that most are planning to increase current retirees' share of health care costs over the next few years. Worse yet, nearly a quarter say they are likely to eliminate health care coverage for their future retirees. It's "the latest bad news for American workers on the health care front," said Drew Altman, CEO of the Kaiser Family Foundation, which sponsored the study.
http://atsh.org/news/kff_retirees.html

THE OTHER SHOE: MEDICARE PREMIUMS GOING UP
The monthly premiums on Medicare Part B will increase to $58.70 in 2003, an increase of 8.7 percent from the current $54. Meanwhile, Social Security benefits will increase only 1.4 percent, the lowest cost-of-living adjustment in four years. Medicare Part B premiums are deducted from Social Security payments.

HEALTH INSURERS CONTEMPLATE UNIVERSAL COVERAGE
Health insurers are beginning to fear that the sea of uninsured Americans will grow so large that it sinks the health-care system. Increasingly, insurance executives are suggesting that some form of universal health care is necessary to avert disaster. In California, a major insurer has proposed a plan that would cover that state's six million uninsured.
http://atsh.org/news/insurers.html

SPANISH-LANGUAGE CAREGIVER MATERIAL
Healing Arts Communications has released Spanish-language versions of its most highly-requested caregiver training materials. Now available in Spanish are the National Caregiver Training Program, an 18-hour training program that teaches caregivers essential care skills, the 3-hour Alzheimer¹s Training Program, the book Quick Tips for Caregivers, and videos on Alzheimer¹s, bedrest, wheelchair use, infection control, medication use, fall prevention and fire safety.
http://www.homecarecompanion.com

FEWER DOCTORS SEEING POORER PATIENTS
The percentage of physicians providing charity care and treating Medicaid patients declined nearly five percent between 1997 and 2001, a study by the Centers for Studying Health System Change finds. The decline is a symptom of the rising financial pressures on physicians, the study's authors said.
http://atsh.org/news/charity.html

20% JUMP IN RX PRICES PREDICTED NEXT YEAR
A study by The Segal Co., a consulting and actuarial firm, forecasts a 19.5 percent increase in retail prescription drug costs in 2003. The 2003 Segal Health Plan Cost Trend Survey attributes about half of the projected increase to price inflation and the rest to health plan member drug usage rates. Fueling the increase is the rising use of preventive drugs, including anti-depressants, antihistamines and lipid-lowering agents. Other contributing factors include an aging population and better disease detection.
http://www.segalco.com/publications/surveysandstudies/2003trendsurvey.pdf

CANADIAN SCAM FLEECED U.S. ELDERS
Canadian telemarketers whose companies targeted elderly U.S. citizens in a lottery scam have agreed to pay nearly $1 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the schemes violated federal laws.
http://atsh.org/news/bond_scam.html

IN THE FORUMS …