The American Geriatrics Society - News - American Geriatrics Society Lauds Senate Health Reform Bill Provisions That Would Significantly Improve Healthcare for Older Adults

For Immediate Release
November 20, 2009

For Further Information:
Erin Weller
(212) 308-1414
eweller@americangeriatrics.org

American Geriatrics Society Lauds Senate Health Reform Bill Provisions That Would Significantly Improve Healthcare for Older Adults

New York, NY - The healthcare reform bill the Senate leadership unveiled Wednesday includes numerous provisions that would help ensure older Americans access to higher quality, more cost-effective and affordable healthcare, and help make the Medicare program more sustainable. The American Geriatrics Society (AGS) -- a nonprofit association of geriatrics healthcare professionals dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of older people -- has long advocated for and strongly supports these provisions.

"The Senate health reform bill would improve elder healthcare significantly by addressing growing, nationwide shortages of healthcare workers trained to meet seniors' unique needs," said AGS President Cheryl Phillips, MD. "This important legislation would also enhance the quality and cost-effectiveness of senior care, and help ensure the sustainability of Medicare. In addition, provisions in the bill would expand coverage for older adults while lowering their out-of-pocket costs for preventive care and medications."

The Senate's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would help address growing eldercare workforce shortages by reforming Medicare payment policy so it more equitably reimburses those who care for older adults. Surveys have repeatedly found that inequities in Medicare payment are a leading disincentive to pursuing careers in elder healthcare. Geriatricians - primary care physicians with advanced training that prepares them to care for even the sickest and most complex older patients - and other geriatrics healthcare providers are already in short supply nationwide. The Senate bill would address the deepening disparity in payments to geriatricians and other primary care providers through a ten-percent Medicare bonus payment for designated primary care services. And it would create a physician "value-based payment program" aimed at improving the quality of care beneficiaries receive.

The Senate bill makes substantial investments in improving eldercare through the significant expansion of geriatrics training programs for healthcare professionals and for the direct-care workers who provide daily care for millions of America's seniors. It would expand training and educational opportunities for healthcare providers who specialize in the care of older patients. And it would establish a Graduate Medical Education policy allowing unused training slots to be reallocated in ways that increase the ranks of -- and seniors' access to -- primary care providers.

In keeping with the Senate bill, Medicare would establish an "Innovation Center" to test new payment and care delivery approaches aimed at further enhancing the quality of care and reducing costs. The legislation would also fund demonstration projects to evaluate promising models of care, such as those providing comprehensive geriatric assessments and care coordination for older patients with multiple chronic illnesses. Such patients are the costliest in the Medicare system and research suggests that this approach can both improve outcomes and cut costs.

Other provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act are designed to improve seniors' health by eliminating beneficiaries' co-pays and deductibles for preventive care, by shrinking the Medicare drug plan's "donut hole" coverage gap, and by establishing new programs to lower hospital readmission rates among Medicare patients. The bill also calls on the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a national strategy for improving the quality of care provided through Medicare and other programs. In addition, the legislation would create a national commission to ensure that the nation's healthcare workforce meets America's needs.

"The AGS will continue to advocate for these and other provisions that improve healthcare for older adults as healthcare reform efforts progress," said AGS Deputy Vice President Nancy Lundebjerg, MPH. "These measures call for important steps toward higher quality, more accessible, more cost-effective care for seniors - today and in the future."

ABOUT THE AGS
Founded in 1942, the American Geriatrics Society (www.americangeriatrics.org) is a non-profit organization of more than 6,400 healthcare professionals whose shared mission is to improve the health, independence and quality of life of older people. Our vision for the future is that all older adults will have access to quality healthcare that meets their unique needs. To achieve this, the Society focuses on: advancing eldercare research; enhancing clinical practice in eldercare; raising public awareness of the healthcare needs of older people; and advocating for public policy that ensures older adults access to quality, appropriate, cost-effective care. The Society is a pivotal force in shaping practices, policies and perspectives in the field.