Tag Archives for Medicare

First Senate Aging Committee hearing of new congress looks at wellness

Published in RINewsToday on February 3, 2025

Over a week after the 119th Congress began on Friday, Jan. 3, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) took the reins of the U.S. Special Committee on Aging, becoming its 20thchairman. He follows in the footsteps of former Chairman Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), a 3-term Democratic Senator, who lost his reelection bid for a fourth term to Republican Dave McCormick. a West Point graduate, combat veteran and bronze star recipient, a national security, expert, and former hedge fund manager.

On Wednesday afternoon, on Jan. 15 in SD 106, Scott chaired the first Senate Aging Committee hearing of the new Congress, entitled “Improving Wellness Among Seniors: Setting a Standard for the American Dream.” The hearing, lasting two hours and seven minutes, put the spotlight on America’s senior health, personal and community safety and the benefits of socializing and working later in life. 

While established in 1961 as a temporary committee, the Senate Aging Committee became a permanent Senate committee in 1977.  Over the years, aging advocates say that committee has operated in a bipartisan manor.  And the Florida Senator says he will carry on this tradition.

In his opening statement, the Republican Chairman stressed that aging is not a partisan issue. “Whether or not we’d like to admit it or note, we are all aging, and it impacts every single one of us regardless of political party” he said.

“I believe we have a big opportunity in this Committee to work in a bipartisan manner to support and improve the lives of America’s current senior citizens and create change that will improve both the lifespan and health span of future generations, said Chairman Scott, pledging that he and his staff will “work together with all the members here to find common ground and ways we can advance or shared goals.”

As chairman, Scott’s goals are to make sure every senior can say that they are physically healthy, financially secure, live in a safe community and has family and community support. “If you have all four of these things, your senior years can be the best time of your life,” he notes.

Sen. Kristin Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), the ranking member who has served on the Senate Aging Committee since 2009, congratulated Scott for assuming his chairmanship position, “I look forward to working closely with you during this Congress,” she said, in her opening statement.

According to the Democratic Senator, the Senate Aging Committee has a long history of bipartisanship. “I hope we continue that tradition to advance an agenda that makes sure our loved ones can age with the support they need and with dignity and respect,” she said.

Gillibrand reported that she hopes to continue working on lower prescription drug costs, continuing to guard against financial scams, and protecting programs that older adults and people with disabilities rely on, such as Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare. 

The ranking member noted that this hearing would address how to promote wellness among older adults. “We’ll address issues like accessible housing, financial security, and engagement with the community,” she said, the importance of giving people the tools to live and age well. “Those tools are different for everyone, but include resources like nutrition assistance programs, Area Agencies on Aging, Centers for Independent Living, supportive housing programs, Medicare and Medicaid, and Social Security,” she added.  

 Ways to Improve the Health and Wellness of the Nation’s Seniors

During his testimony, Sheriff Bill Prummell rattled off a list of proactive and effective ways that the Sheriff’s Office serves and protects seniors and disabled adults residing in Charlottee County, Florida.  Prummell shared a number of innovative programs with the Senators that could easily be replicated throughout the nation.  

Here are just a few…

According to Prummell, who serves as President of the Florida Sheriff’s Association, his office utilizes trained volunteers to reach out weekly to isolated age 60 and over seniors and disabled adults. The volunteers get to know these individuals thru their weekly phone calls, by giving them Christmas gifts and mailing birthday cards to these individuals on that special date, too. 

Meanwhile, Prummell noted that efforts like Project Lifesaver (using GPS tracking bracelets to locate wanderers) and DNA Scent Kits (enabling participants to keep a DNA scent article at home to be used by K9 Deputies) to assist his deputies in finding missing wanderers.  

And, Operation Pill Drop, even allows individuals to dispose of expired or unwanted medication in drug receptacle boxes at participating district offices, he says, noting that this keeps family members and others from accessing the senior’s medication cabinet to take old and unused medications. 

While she has seen dramatic improvements in preventative and health promotion programs, “we still have a long way to go,” says Witness Maria Alvarez, Executive Director of New York Statewide Senior Action Council.  She used the Senate Aging Committee hearing as a bully pulpit to call for a 2025 White House Conference on Aging be held to “help the country chart a course for addressing the needs of the growing older population as 20 percent of this country is now over the age of 65.”

“But we cannot ignore the need to recognize that having health care and preventive services available is not sufficient if they are not affordable or if discrimination, actual or perceived persists,” Alvarez says.

According to Alvarez, along with Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid, the Older Americans Act “has had seismic effect on the elderly population. “These programs provide a framework that seniors can rely on to continue to live and thrive and live with dignity, she says.

Witness Dawn Carr, Ph.D., director of the Claude Pepper Center at Florida State University, told the attending Senators that it’s time to reframe aging policy to promote healthy aging, noting that this “will require an expansion of our current aging-related policy goals.” These goals must emphasize supporting healthy aging throughout a person’s lifespan, she said.

“It means expanding healthy aging research, improving health care literacy and access, and incentivizing health behaviors and health interventions based on optimal health function goals,” says Dr. Carr, adding that this means “thinking about viewing older people as a critical resource that improves our society, rather than as a barrier to societal progress.”

Finally, during her testimony, Professor Emerita Dr. Susan Hughes, Ph.D., in the Division of Community Health Sciences and Founding Director of the Center for Research and Health and Aging at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) described the imitations of current funding for health promotion programs for older adults, calling for “transformational re-thinking” of a historical focus on post-acute care.  According to Dr. Hughes, this has resulted in  funding gaps in supporting long-term care and preventative programs for older adults, especially for those with chronic conditions like arthritis. 

Increased funding for wellness programs could reduce health care costs and improve out outcomes, she says, citing the success of UIC’s Fit & Strong! Program, a low cost, evidence-based intervention that helps senior’s manage osteoarthritis through physical activity.

But, despite the success of programs like Fit & Strong! lack of funding and reimbursement mechanisms, limit their impact, charges Dr. Hughes. calling for the Older American’s Act (OAA), particularly Title III D (or a new title), to support the funding of physical activity programming. 

“Ultimately, however, we will see much bigger returns if we develop demonstrations and/or regulations or reimbursement mechanisms that support the dissemination of and access to evidence-based health promotion programs as extensively as possible through Medicare, says Dr. Hughes. 

Walking the Talk

“Helping older people is a bipartisan issue — and the Aging Committee has a history of addressing the challenges that seniors face.  The work that the Senate Aging Committee does is especially critical today, with 10,000 Baby Boomers turning 65 every day, and given the uncertainty about the future of critical programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security,” says Max Richtman, President & CEO, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare.

Taking the reins of the Senate Aging Committee, Chairman Scott pledges to work with Ranking Member Gillibrand in a “bipartisan manner” to improve the lives of America’s seniors.  Will he walk his talk or are these just empty words?   

Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Aging Committee MUST work together to push the Republican-controlled Senate to allocate increased funding for the AOA and Medicare, or create additional reimbursement mechanisms to promote health and wellness programs.  Research tells us that these programs increase physical activity, brings people together to socialize, and enhances brain health, and even cuts medical costs.  Even with a federal budget deficit, in this case Congress must not be penny wise and pound foolish. 

To watch this Senate Aging Committee hearing go to 

https://www.aging.senate.gov/hearings/improving-wellness-among-seniors-setting-a-standard-for-the-american-dream.

National survey says care for older adults needs urgent rethinking 

Published in RINewsToday on January 27, 2025

With President Trump’s administration beginning and a new Congress poised to rethink, among other issues, Social Security, Medicare and federal aging programs and services, it might be prudent for the president and lawmakers to take a quick glance at the findings of a recently released national survey, “Meeting the Growing Demand for Age-Friendly Care: Health Care at the Crossroads.”

This 52-page national report, was released on Sept. 17, 2024 by Emeryville, California-based Age Wave, a think tank that studies the social, financial, healthcare, and business impacts of aging and The John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF), a New York based-foundation dedicated to improving care of older adults. The survey was conducted by The Harris Poll, a marking and analytic company tracking public opinion in existence for over sixty years ago.  

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, America’s population of adults over 65 is expected to skyrocket, from 56.1 million in 2020 to 82.1 million by 2050. The enormous  increase in the number of older adults is forcing states, Congress, and the private sector to rethink their approaches to health care, social services, housing and more, to help older adults live well as they age.

As millions of Baby Boomers (born 1946 to 1964) age, living longer than previous generations and seeking ways to maintain wellness and independence to age in place, this nationwide survey shows deep dissatisfaction among older Americans aged 65 and over with health care and services they receive that do not meet their specific needs and preferences. 

Finding Policy Solutions to Maximize “Golden Years”

The national survey reported that four in five older adults (82%) say the U.S. health care system is not prepared for the growing and changing needs of America’s aging population. Just one in 10 (11%) give the health care system an ‘A’ grade. Instead of the status quo, older adults say they want solutions that will maximize their golden years, like interventions that make care more affordable, innovations to reduce or prevent cognitive decline and health care providers who understand what matters most to them when assessing care options.

“Older adults are stuck in a health care system that is not responsive to their goals and preferences. Boomers want health care that maximizes their health and ability to function, and they want their providers to listen to them,” said Terry Fulmer, JAHF’s president, in a Sept. 17 statement announcing the release of the report. “It is not too late to pivot to age-friendly care, which prioritizes the needs and desires of older adults in their care plan. There are many innovative approaches to help older adults live every year to its fullest, not just increase the number of years they live,” she says.

International longevity and aging expert, Ken Dychtwald, founder and CEO of Age Wave, added: “The United States is on the brink of an age wave of unprecedented proportions, and American health care requires a radical and immediate rethink to match our health spans, or being able to live every year to its fullest, to our lifespans.”

Dychtward urged policy and business leaders to prepare for older adults making up a large and growing percentage of the U.S. population. “Everyone knows this day has been coming, but our survey shows that older adults do not like the choices or care currently offered to them. And the fact that although we spend more per capita on health care than any country in the world yet have worse lifespans and health spans is cause for alarm,” he said.

The age 65 and over survey respondents called for America’s health care system to offer “age-friendly care.” Most older adults (94%) say it is more important to maintain quality of life than it is to live as long as possible.

Only three in five older adults with a health care provider (58%) report that their providers currently ask about what matters to them. Though older adults fear Alzheimer’s and dementia more than any other health condition, for example, less than half (40%) say their health care providers routinely evaluate their cognitive health and brain functioning. Similarly, less than half of older adults (45%) say their health care providers evaluate their mental health, and although the ability to walk freely without pain is top of mind for older adults, just 55% say their medical care providers evaluate their mobility and physical fitness. 

The national survey findings indicated that the older respondents say that there are not enough qualified care providers. Nearly all older adults (94%) say that health care providers should be trained on the unique health issues of people 65 or older, but only 10% of medical schools require a rotation in geriatric care, compared to 96% that require a rotation in pediatric care. 

Between 2000 and 2022, the U.S. population of adults aged 65 and older rose 60%, but the number of geriatricians dropped by a whopping 28%. says the report. 

Not surprisingly, the survey findings indicate that health care costs are viewed as “unaffordable” and of a bigger concern to older adults than living expenses, inflation, tax increases and an economic downturn or recession. For instance, just 16% give an ‘A’ grade to satisfaction with their out-of-pocket costs. Older adults are especially concerned with the cost of long-term care, stressing that one of their greatest concerns is not being able to afford future health and long-term care needs (68%), and that the government should prioritize having Medicare cover long-term care (80%).

Differing Views of the Quality of Nursing Home Care

An estimated 36 million Americans have a family member or friend living in a nursing home or memory care facility today, according to the survey. Just 37% of those adults ages 18+ say their family member or friend living in a nursing home or memory care facility receives high-quality care. Only half (50%) say these facilities are the safest place for them.

There must be more coordination between primary care providers and other health care providers. While 52% of Medicare beneficiaries see more than three physicians per year, half of older adults from the survey say their primary care provider does not coordinate their treatment with their other health care providers. The report notes that this may be attributed to the increasing shortage of primary care providers, which makes it less likely for people to have a usual source of primary care or long-term relationship with a primary care provider.

As noted in Primary Care in Rhode Island, in 2024, from 200,000 to 400,000 Rhode Islanders lack access to a primary care provider, resulting in a shortage of 133 to 266 primary care physicians to treat them.

Finally, more than half of older adults (56%) say it is challenging and very stressful to navigate the current health care system, while nearly two in three (62%) say health insurance plans provide too many confusing choices. Research has shown that more than half (55%) mistakenly believe Medicare will cover a long-term stay in a nursing home, the report added.

As the new Congress begins its debate on aging policy, regardless of political party, the national survey reports that their older constituents want public policies enacted that support quality care.  The survey findings indicate that adding long-term care to what Medicare covers is supported by most Republicans (76%), Democrats (84%) and independents or people with other political affiliations (79%). Additionally, there is bipartisan support for improving quality at U.S. nursing homes also earns bipartisan support (Republicans 62% support, Democrats 68% support, independents or people with other political affiliations 65% support). 

“Better federal and state policies can encourage the development of age-friendly health systems, that focus on improving patients’ well-being and quality of life,” predicts JAHF’s Fulmer. “Policies could include new options for affording long-term care insurance and developing a federal strategy to ensure disadvantaged populations are prioritized in a national strategy for age-friendly care,” she says.

Report Offers 5 Key Suggestions to Improve Care to older Americans 

After reviewing all survey findings, JAHF identified five key recommendations to improve health care provided to older adults and to promote healthier, happier aging.

JAHF calls for promoting age-friendly care that can assist the nation’s older adults maintain their health, ability to function, thus maintaining their independence in the community. Pursuing scientific breakthroughs could bring the end to diseases like Alzheimer’s adds JAHF, calling for social isolation must be addressed. 

Assist family caregivers with skill-building tools, policies that allow flexibility in taking paid leave and ensuring care providers coordinate among multiple providers the health care system easier to navigate. 

Finally, JAHF calls for the creation of a ‘national master plan for aging’ that will be focused on meeting the needs of older adults. This plan would identify and address barriers that contribute to inequities, also creating a strategic plan that would provide a roadmap to reform the financing of long-term care, enhance the quality of nursing home care and to create systems to assist people to age in place at home rather than being admitted to acute and congregate settings. 

“We are at a unique crossroads. However, changing America’s health care system to meet older adults’ expectations is possible, practical and could lead to greater health at a far lower cost—and can benefit the government, private enterprise and consumers,” said Dychtwald. “Older adults deserve health care partners who understand what they are going through, have the skills to most effectively support their patients and act on what their customers want,” he says.

The Nuts and Bolts Behind the Study 

The study was conducted by Age Wave on behalf of The John A. Hartford Foundation and in partnership with The Harris Poll. After thorough review of secondary research and through qualitative research with older adults through online focus groups, a  nationally representative online survey was conducted from April 17 to May 9, 2024. Of 5,023 adult (age 18+) respondents, 2,516 were age 65 and older. Data were weighted where necessary to align them with their actual proportions in the population, including by age, gender, race/ethnicity, region, education, household income, size of household, marital status, and political party affiliation. 

Note:  The full report, Meeting the Growing . for Age-Friendly Care: Health Care at the Crossroads, can be found at https://www.johnahartford.org/images/uploads/resources/The_Growing_Demand_for_Age-Friendly_Care_Report_FINAL.pdf.

To watch the “Webinar: What Older Adults Want: Emerging Breakthroughs & Opportunities for Age-Friendly Care, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK6D4-G3KPw.

Looking back at 2024, sharing some favorites

Published in RINewsToday on January 7, 2025

Like many national news organizations, RINewsToday, The Pawtucket Times and Woonsocket Call (now combined into one newspaper called the Blackstone Valley Call & Times), offers its readers an ‘age beat’ editorial commentary, covering a myriad of aging issues, Congress (including Social Security and Medicare) retirement, the long-term care continuum, consumer issues, spirituality, pop culture, health care and even economics. Throughout these years

I’ve covered these issues as they relate to older Rhode Islanders, also covering Smith Hill, when there are state policy debates on issues that will impact older Rhode Islanders.

As a Rhode Island ‘age beat’ journalist for over 45 years, I have penned over 1,000 stories covering issues of interest to our readers. These authored and coauthored pieces have appeared in national, state and trade publications.

For many of these editorial commentaries, I have consistently drawn on the invaluable research produced by the Washington, DC-based AARP. Their insightful reports, polls, and studies have provided a wealth of information that has deepened public understanding of the challenges and opportunities of aging. I’ve also drawn on the expertise of professionals in the Rhode Island aging network for their perspective and comments on these topics, giving the editorial a good, local slant, where possible.

In 2024, my commentaries have appeared weekly in daily news outlets, also in other media outlets including RINewsToday – that’s about 52 articles a year – over quite a few years now! I’ve written for digital news publications, Senior Digest, a monthly publication for those over age 50, the Narragansett Times, Kent County Daily, Cranston Herald, Warwick Beacon and the Johnston Sun who have picked up stories, and of course, my own blog.

As we celebrate the New Year and look forward to 2025, looking back, I have selected my top five favorite commentaries published in 2024. Specifically:

“Stoic Tips for the Class of 2024,” May 27, 2024.

Generally, thousands of commencement speeches occur annually at university and colleges in the U.S. The common themes of these speakers (traditionally 10 minutes in length, up to 2,500 words) that typically emerge in their speeches in 2024 were: resilience and overcoming challenges; embracing change and innovation; social responsibility and making a difference; the power of community and collaboration; and personal growth and lifelong learning; mental health and well-being and finally embracing diversity and inclusion.

Over the years, never being invited to give a commencement speech, I have traditionally penned my own. So, in 2024, advice was giving to graduating seniors, pulling from stoicism, a school of Hellenistic philosophy that thrived in Ancient Greece and Rome. Advice came from: Epictetus, a former slave in Hierapolis (modern-day Turkey) around 50 CE; Seneca the Younger, who lived in the 1st century CE; Stoic Philosopher Marcus Aurelius, a Roman Emperor who ruled from 161 to 180 CE; and Stoic Greek philosopher, Heraclitus.

Graduating seniors were advised to remember the teachings of Stoic philosophy that would offer them a timeless roadmap for living a life of purpose, meaning, and fulfillment.

“Congressman Magaziner Takes Baton on Bring Back House Aging Committee,” March 4, 2024

Over 30 years ago, the US House Democratic leadership’s belt-tightening efforts to save $1.5 million resulted in the termination of the House Permanent Select Committee on Aging. This commentary announced Cong. Seth Magaziner (RI-2) legislative attempt to bring back the House Select Committee on Aging (HSCoA) when he picked up the baton from former Cong. David Cicilline who sought to bring it back during the 114th-117th Congresses.

The Commentary announced that Cong. Seth Magaziner’s introduction of H. Res. 1029, on Feb. 23, 2024, (cosponsored by Cong. Gabe Amo (RI-1) and 27 House Democratic lawmakers) to reestablish the HSCoA. It was referred to the House Committee on Rules for mark-up, (which never occurred) and the legislative resolution died at the conclusion of the 118th Congress.

According to the commentary, every day 12,000 Americans turn 60. By 2030, nearly 75 million people in the U.S. — or 20% of the country — will be age 65 or older. With the graying of our nation, the need for support and services provided under programs like Social Security, SSI, Medicare, Medicaid and the Older Americans Act increases.

Magaziner’s 213-word resolution would have authorized the HSCoA to study the use of all practicable means and methods of encouraging the development of public and private programs and policies which will assist seniors in taking a full part in national life and which will encourage the utilization of the knowledge, skills, special aptitudes, and abilities of seniors to contribute to a better quality of life for all Americans.

Finally, the House Resolution would also allow the HSCoA to develop policies that would encourage the coordination of both governmental and private programs designed to deal with problems of aging and to review any recommendations made by the President or by the White House Conference on aging in relation to programs or policies affecting seniors.

Hopefully, we will see Magaziner continue his attempt to bring back the HSCoA by reintroducing a new resolution during this new Congress. With his

“If You Want a Friend in Washington, Get a Furry Friend,” Aug. 5, 2024.

With an increasing number of adults reporting a decrease in the number of close friends, the old adage, “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog,” might also be applicable outside the Beltway, even in the Ocean State. This companionship can also boost your physical and mental health. Your furry friends’ capacity for unconditional love enables them to share our lives’ highs and lows.

This commentary stressed the powerful bond of owning a pet and how the relationship offers mental and emotion support to their owners.

According to the findings of an American Psychiatric Association (APA) Healthy Minds Monthly poll released jointly with the American Veterinary Medical Association, among the many mental health benefits of pets, nearly two-thirds of pet owners say that their animals offer companionship (65%), are a true friend (65%) and provide unconditional love and support (64%), the survey finds. Eighty-four percent of pet owners say that their pets have a mostly positive impact on their mental health, similar to the findings of last year’s polling on the same topic. The poll was of 2,200 adults, done by Morning Consult.

Furthermore, the survey’s findings indicated 62 percent of the survey’s respondents say that pets provide a calming presence and also help reduce their stress and anxiety. Thirty-five percent note that their pet encourages them to be more physically active, too. The findings note that owning a pet adds structure to a respondent’s schedule and can even increase social connections with others (19%).

Yes, in Washington or outside the Beltway, if you want a friend, get a dog (or even a cat, bird or hamster). Pets can become a protective buffer against physical and mental disorders and life stressors.

“Someone’s Trash is a Military Family’s Treasure: Ours,” June 3, 2024.

This commentary, in the Blackstone Valley Call & Times, highlighted my efforts to retrieve a military footlocker that belonged to my father, after being notified that a Detroit couple, Michael Shannon and his girlfriend Cetaura Bell, found it cast away on a sidewalk for anyone to claim. The trunk had sat in a vacant garage for over 60 years (with the owner having no relations with the owner Lt. Frank M. Weiss). The couple went out of their way to try and finally successfully track me down thru an internet search.

My story was picked up by RINewsToday, and then in several local papers. The Detroit Free Press, a Gannet publication also did a story, in both their digital and print editions, and then other Gannet papers, including the Providence Journal, the Cincinnati paper and the Indy Star. Perhaps the biggest connection, though, was made with Stars & Stripes – the US military’s independent news source with a circulation of over 1 million readers.

“Shortage of direct care professionals a local and national concern,” April 22, 2024

Over 23 years ago, commentaries in the Pawtucket Times that I wrote reported on the crisis of a direct care staffing shortage and inadequate reimbursement being paid to nursing facilities to care for Rhode Island’s frail seniors. As we enter 2025, NOTHING has changed and these staffing and reimbursement issues still continue to exit.

The commentary took a look at a U.S. Special Committee on Aging hearing, chaired by Chairman Bob Casey, (D-PA), showcasing S. 4120, legislation that he introduced with U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI). The Long-Term Care Workforce Support Act, introduced during the 118thCongress,would ensure that direct care professionals have a sustainable, lifelong career by providing substantial new funding to support these workers in every part of the long-term care industry, from nursing homes to home care, to assisted living facilities.

The Senate Aging Committee hearing revealed a number of statistical findings showing the need for Congress to address the nation’s severe ongoing direct care professional workforce shortage. It was noted that a recently released survey revealed 92% of nursing facility respondents and nearly 70% of assisted living facilities reported significant or severe workforce shortages.

The April 16th hearing entitled, “The Long-Term Care Workforce: Addressing Shortages and Improving the Profession,” examined the challenges currently facing long-term care workers who are often underpaid and overworked, leading to widespread worker shortages that threaten the availability of care for those who need it.

“It’s a crisis that stems largely from a lack of support for and investment in our care giving workforce,” warned Casey in his opening statement. “Between 50 to over 90 percent of long-term care settings and providers report significant staffing shortages, affecting their ability to provide services, accept new clients, or even to remain open,” he said, with witnesses providing personal testimony about this policy issue.

John E. Gage, MBA, NHA, President & CEO, of the Rhode Island Health Care Association (RIHCA), Maureen Maigret, policy advisory of the Senior Agenda of RI (SACRI), offered their views of the nation’s severe ongoing direct care professional workforce shortage citing Rhode Island specific examples.

In conclusion…

I extend my heartfelt thanks to the thousands of individuals I have interviewed over these 45 years. Their comments reflecting insights and observations about aging, health care, and medical issues, have profoundly enriched these commentaries.

To review all my 53 commentaries that appeared in 2024 (including the above cited), go to http://www.herbweiss.blog.