Preventive Services Covered Under the Affordable Care Act: follow the link for a list September 13, 2012

Preventive Services

If you have a new health insurance plan or insurance policy beginning on or after September 23, 2010, many preventive services must be covered without your having to pay a copayment or co-insurance or meet your deductible. This applies only when these services are delivered by a network provider.

Most people are willing to have more preventive health services done if they were FREE. September 13, 2012

It’s quite possible that many services are available at no cost to you.  Visit the Prevention & Wellness page on Healthcare.gov to find out what many insurers are required to cover.

Does FREE preventive healthcare for you and your family sound good? August 30, 2012

It’s possible that under the Affordable Care Act, you and your family may be eligible.

What does this mean for you?  If your plan is subject to these new requirements, you may not have to pay a copayment, co-insurance, or deductible to receive recommended preventive health services, such as screenings, vaccinations, and counseling.

To read the details and find out what preventative services might be covered.  Please follow this link to read the complete article on the government’s healthcare site:  ‘Learn about free preventive care for you and your family.’

Adding fish to your diet doesn’t have to boring! July 18, 2012

We all know the benefits of adding fish to our diet, but many are left wondering how. Here are six heart-healthy recipes from Woman’s Day to help you out!

http://www.womansday.com/food-recipes/healthy-recipes/6-heart-healthy-seafood-recipes-102845

Immunizations for adults? Sound silly? Well, April 26, 2012

if you think vaccinations are only for children, you may want to read the article below. Around 40,000 people a year die from diseases that could have been prevented with simple immunizations.

http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/04/23/11352715-adults-need-vaccines-too-but-were-not-getting-them?lite

Do anti-cancer superfoods really work? January 5, 2012

The short answer to this question is — drum roll, please — yes. They really do. While studies are ongoing, and in many cases experts still don’t know exactly how these superfoods work, there’s strong evidence that certain fruits and vegetables rich in plant-based nutrients can both prevent tumors from starting and halt their growth. Here, the top foods to work into the family diet if you’d like to cut cancer risk or help those with cancer recover. And who wouldn’t?

Follow this link to get the details http://health.yahoo.net/articles/cancer/photos/10-foods-prevent-cancer#0

 

Via http://health.yahoo.net by Melanie Haiken

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Getting Relief – You Can Lower Your Prescription Medication Costs December 22, 2011

Arlington has launched a program to help provide residents with some relief from the high cost of prescription medications. Through the program — sponsored by the National League of Cities (NLC) — the City is making free prescription discount cards available to residents. The discount cards offer residents an average of 23 percent savings off the retail price of prescription medications. The NLC Prescription Discount Card can be used by all residents of Arlington and has no restrictions based on a resident’s age, income level, or existing health coverage. The card can be used at pharmacies around the city, as well as at more than 60,000 participating retail pharmacies across the country.

Visit http://www.arlingtontx.gov/news/2011/archive_1211_04.html for detailed information.

Long-Term Care Costs on the Rise November 1, 2011

WESTPORT, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Costs continue to rise for those requiring long-term care in the U.S. According to the newly released 2011 MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Home, Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, and Home Care Costs, conducted by the MetLife Mature Market Institute, national average rates for a private nursing home room increased 4.4% to $239 daily or $87,235 annually, in 2011. Assisted living base rates rose by 5.6% to $3,477 monthly or $41,724 annually. Adult day services went up by 4.5% to $70 per day. Home health aides and homemaker/companion service rates were unchanged at $21 and $19 per hour, respectively.

“This year’s increases are greater than previous years. The state of the economy, combined with rising health care and energy costs, are having a significant impact on long-term care rates. In fact, long-term care rates continue to outpace the medical inflation rate”

The highest average daily rates for nursing homes continue to be in Alaska, where rates decreased slightly to $655 for a private room compared to $687 in 2010. Costs were lowest in Louisiana, outside the Baton Rouge and Shreveport Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA), at an average of $141 per day for a private room.

For assisted living, the Washington, D.C. area had the highest average monthly base rate at $5,757, a 10% increase from last year. Arkansas, outside of the Little Rock MSA, had the lowest average monthly rate of $2,156, also an increase.

“This year’s increases are greater than previous years. The state of the economy, combined with rising health care and energy costs, are having a significant impact on long-term care rates. In fact, long-term care rates continue to outpace the medical inflation rate,” said Sandra Timmermann, Ed.D., director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute. “The result is dramatic protracted inflation that will impact consumers. As the cost of care continues to rise, Americans need to discuss long-term care planning with their families now, to ensure they receive the kind of care they want in the future. This is especially critical at a time when retirement savings rates are low.”

The MetLife Market Survey and accompanying report provide a good deal of additional information regarding various types of long-term care available in the U.S. and a detailed breakdown of costs by region.

Nursing Homes:

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2010, 66% of nursing home residents were women. The median age of residents was 82.7 years.

Fifteen percent of nursing homes surveyed have an associated assisted living unit or wing; 11% are part of a continuing care retirement community (CCRC).

A small percentage (10%) of nursing homes surveyed provide adult day services.

The majority (87%) of nursing homes surveyed provide Alzheimer’s or dementia care; of those, 80% charge the same rate for care.

Assisted Living:

Current estimates from the American Seniors Housing Association indicate that the average age of an assisted living resident is 86.9 years old, and the median length of stay in assisted living is 25.6 months.

Oversight of assisted living communities rests primarily with state governments rather than federal regulation. In 2007, several states strengthened existing standards or implemented new standards for communities with residents with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia.

Almost three-quarters (72%) of assisted living communities surveyed provide Alzheimer’s and dementia care, 50% of which charge an additional fee for the service.

Home Health Care:

The majority (79%) of the home health care agencies surveyed provide Alzheimer’s training to their employees, and almost all (99%) agencies surveyed do not charge an additional fee for patients with Alzheimer’s.

While most home care agencies surveyed provide an hourly rate, 81% of the agencies require a minimum number of hours per day ranging from 30 minutes to eight hours with three hours being the average. Small percentages (3%) provide a daily rate. About 32% of those surveyed have a 24-hour or live-in rate. The average daily live-in rate for a home health aide is $258 and $255 for a homemaker/companion.

Adult Day Services Centers:

More than three-quarters of adult day services centers surveyed are open Monday through Friday; 6% are also open Saturdays and 13% are open seven days per week. For those open 24 hours, 67% provide full adult day services for all 24 hours. Seven in ten centers provide transportation services to and from the center. Of these, 47% do not charge a fee for these services. Of those that charge for transportation, the average one-way fee is about $8.

Almost all (98%) of the centers surveyed provide services for those with Alzheimer’s disease, with 2% of these charging an additional fee.

2011 MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Home, Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, and Home Care Costs can be downloaded from www.MatureMarketInstitute.com. The publication can also be ordered through Contact Us on the MetLife Mature Market Institute Web site, by writing to: MetLife Mature Market Institute, 57 Greens Farms Road, Westport, CT 06880 or by e-mailing MatureMarketInstitute@metlife.com.

Methodology

The MetLife survey of 2,003 nursing homes, 1,492 assisted living communities, 1,644 home care agencies and 1,341 adult day services, in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, was conducted by telephone between April and August 2011, by LifePlans, Inc., for the MetLife Mature Market Institute.

Medicaid Scam Alert! October 12, 2011

The Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) issued this news release late yesterday warning Texans with Medicaid coverage to be aware of a recently reported scam involving a caller asking a Medicaid recipient to provide a bank account number in an attempt to sell the recipient a replacement card for $50.

This scam preys on Medicaid recipients exploiting the fact that the State recently replaced paper Medicaid cards with plastic cards that were mailed to recipients’ homes. HHSC reminds people who have lost cards that they can call the State for a free replacement and never to give out personal information over the phone.

The State is advising Medicaid clients who receive similar calls to make note of the number the call came from and to report it immediately to the state at (800) 436-6184.

Best Belly-Fat Buster August 18, 2011

Which should you cut back on first if you want to trim belly fat — carbs or fat?  You might think that dietary fat goes straight to your middle, but research suggests that too many empty carbs is really the first thing to do your belly in.

Dueling Diets
In a study, healthy overweight men and women went on two consecutive 8-week diet interventions. The first diet period was focused on weight maintenance and the second aimed for weight reduction by cutting calories. Through each phase, the participants followed either a reduced-fat or a reduced-carbohydrate diet. When all was said and done, both groups lost weight. But it turned out that the group on the reduced-carb diet — which, incidentally, also focused on quality, low-glycemic-index carbs — lost 11 percent more deep belly fat compared with the group on the low-fat diet. Plus, the low-carb group lost more fat mass overall.  Shrinking the amount of belly fat you have is always a good idea for your health, because too much visceral — or intra-abdominal — fat increases your risk of diabetes, stroke, and heart disease.

Information from RealAge.com.  Follow this link for tips and tricks to lose the fat:  http://www.realage.com/tips/cutting-carbs-reduces-belly-fat?eid=1010643054&memberid=16585953