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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 26, 2001

Contact: Drew Goesl
(202) 224-4843
Contact: Pamela W. Ingham, AGS
(312) 565-1234, ext. 4115
pingham@americangeriatrics.org

New York, NY - U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) introduced legislation today that would increase the number of geriatricians in our country through training incentives and Medicare reimbursement for geriatric care.

America has 76 million aging Baby Boomers, and in 30 years, 70 million Americans will be 65 years and older, representing one-fifth of the United States' population.

"Our country teeters on the brink of revolutionary demographic change as Baby Boomers begin to retire and Medicare begins to care for them," said Senator Lincoln. "Our nation's health care system will face an unprecedented strain as our population grows older. Demand for quality care will increase, and we will need physicians who understand the complex health problems that aging inevitably brings."

Geriatricians are physicians who are first board certified in family practice or internal medicine and then complete additional training in geriatrics. Geriatric medicine provides the most comprehensive health care for the most vulnerable seniors, promoting wellness and preventive care, helping to improve patients' overall quality of life by allowing them greater independence and preventing unnecessary and costly trips to the hospital or institutions.

According to the American Geriatrics Society (AGS), whose leadership helped craft this legislation, there is an urgent need to increase the number of practicing geriatricians in the United States. Currently, there are fewer than 9,000 certified geriatricians, and this number is expected to decline dramatically in the next few years as practicing geriatricians retire at the same time the baby boom generation attains Medicare eligibility.

"As seniors live longer, they face much greater risks of disease and disability. Conditions such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease occur more frequently as people age. The complex problems associated with aging require a supply of physicians with special training in geriatrics," said Lincoln. "Geriatrics is a vital thread in the fabric of our health care system, especially in light of our looming demographic changes."

The Geriatric Care Act of 2001 improves access to geriatric care, and takes an important first step in modernizing Medicare for the 21st century. It would modernize the Medicare fee schedule to acknowledge the importance of geriatric assessment and care coordination in providing health care for seniors. The bill authorizes Medicare to cover these essential services for seniors, thereby allowing geriatricians to manage medications effectively, to work with other health care providers as a team, and to provide necessary support for caregivers.

The Geriatric Care Act also will remove the disincentive caused by the Graduate Medical Education Cap established by the 1997 Balanced Budget Act. As a result of this cap, many hospitals have eliminated or reduced their geriatric training programs. The Geriatric Care Act corrects this problem by allowing additional geriatric training slots in hospitals. By allowing hospitals to exceed the cap placed on their training slots, this bill would increase the number of residents in geriatric training programs.

Arkansas ranks sixth in the nation in the percentage of population 65 and older, and is projected to rank third in ten years. The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock is one of only three medical schools in the country that has a Department of Geriatrics.

"In many ways, our population in Arkansas is a snapshot of what the rest of the United States will look like in the near future. Arkansas needs to begin planning for these changing demographics today." said Lincoln.

"Given the dramatic increase in the number of older persons in this country and the shortage of geriatricians, any incentive to increase the number of geriatricians will be a tremendous boon to our nation's healthcare system," said Dr. David A. Lipschitz, MD, PhD, Professor of Geriatrics/Department Chair at the Donald W. Reynolds Center Department of Geriatrics at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

"If older people are going to obtain the time they need to be comprehensively assessed by a physician so that their complex problems can be addressed, it is important that geriatricians are properly reimbursed by Medicare. Senator Lincoln's legislation is largely welcomed by geriatricians and other healthcare providers who care for the frail elderly," said Lipschitz.

A member of the Special Committee on Aging and the Finance Committee that will have direct jurisdiction over this legislation, Lincoln has a special interest in preparing health care providers and Medicare for the inevitable "aging of America.