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Homecare is Cost-Effective for Medicare, Says Media Survey
June 23, 2005 - A recent survey of medical and healthcare literature documents that homecare is the more cost-effective setting for healthcare, according to the American Association for Homecare. Studies published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Health Care Financing Review, and other journals illustrate the value of homecare, they report.
Earlier this month, hundreds of delegates from the AAH called on Congress to consider these studies and support policy that emphasizes greater use of homecare.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt recently called home-based care ?adically more efficient·for Medicaid. The Association believes the same principal applies to Medicare.
?omecare is not only cost-effective and clinically effective, but it? preferred by patients and their families,·said Kay Cox, President and CEO of the American Association for Homecare. ?omecare is a family value and it? an important part of the answer to our nation? healthcare crisis.·nbsp;
A summary of several studies are below.
Homecare Reduces Costs by 37 Percent for Heart Failure Patients
The May 2004 Journal of the American Geriatrics Society reports that homecare directed by Advanced Practice Nurses (APNs) reduced total costs of care for patients suffering from heart failure and comorbid conditions, attributable to fewer and later hospitalizations and fewer deaths. (?ransitional Care of Older Adults Hospitalized with Heart Failure: A Randomized Controlled Trial,·Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, May 2004.)
Cost of Home Intravenous Antibiotic Treatment Much Lower than Hospital, SNF Settings
This 1998 study in Clinical Infectious Diseases quantifies cost savings of a home intravenous antibiotic program in a Medicare managed care plan. The average cost per day of home therapy was $122, compared to $798 in the hospital and $541 in a skilled nursing facility (SNF) setting. (Dalovisio, J., et al, ?inancial Impact of a Home Intravenous Antibiotic Program on a Medicare Managed Care Program,· Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2000.)
One Year of Long-Term Oxygen Therapy at Home Costs Less than One Day in Hospital
Oxygen can be provided to a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patient who lives at home for one year at less than the average Medicare cost for one day in the hospital, which is $3,606 (Annual Statistical Supplement, 2004, Social Security Bulletin). Direct medical costs for COPD in the U.S. total $18 billion per year, nearly 9% of Medicare expenditures. (Dunne PJ. ?he demographics and economics of long-term oxygen therapy.·Respiratory Care. 45:223-228, 2000.)
Review of Medicaid Homecare in Seven States Shows Reduced Costs
A 2002 study published in Health Care Financing Review describes the characteristics of Medicaid home and community-based (HCB) programs in seven states. In Washington, the state imposed strict fiscal caps, keeping spending to 40 percent of the cost of nursing home care on a per capita basis. In 1999 in Alabama, spending per enrollee in HCB services was $6,612 compared to a per capita cost in nursing homes of $22,771. (Wiener, J., et al, ?ome and Community-Based Services in Seven States,·Health Care Financing Review, Spring 2002.)
Homecare Saves 65 Percent in Post-Acute Care
A 1999 study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association reported savings of about 65 percent in a randomized-controlled trial of post-acute home-based management by advanced practice nurses. (Naylor, MD, et al, ?omprehensive discharge planning and home follow-up of hospitalized elders,·JAMA 281:613-620, 1999.)
Homecare delivers value for Americans·healthcare dollar. The American Association for Homecare is the only national association that represents every line of service in the homecare community, including home health and home medical equipment providers, respiratory and infusion therapy, telemedicine, rehab and assistive technology, and hospice. With more than 3,000 member locations, AAHomecare advances quality healthcare services where patients prefer them ·at home.
More detail is available at www.aahomecare.org.
MUM WHO'S KEPT ALIVE BY.. VIAGRA
Sex drug miracle for Catherine, 32
By Lucy Thornton
SERIOUSLY ill mum Catherine Lee is being kept alive by a sex drug used to treat impotence in men. The 32-year-old, who has a rare heart condition, is taking enough of the Viagra-style drug to fuel 10 men daily.
She says the pills have saved her life and helped her become an active mum again to daughter Poppy, two.
Catherine suffers from primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH) - a progressive narrowing of the blood vessels of the lungs, causing high blood pressure and eventually heart failure.
In a pioneering trial the Hull woman was given Cialis - normally used to treat men's erection problems - to fight the disease, which hits one in a million.
She said: "If I did not take this drug I would pass out from any exertion at all. Luckily the drug doesn't affect me sexually in any way at all. I'm quite thankful that I am a woman."
Catherine's symptoms began five years ago when she suffered palpitations and dizziness. After giving birth to Poppy prematurely she would black out with exhaustion. A cardiologist finally diagnosed PPH about a year ago.
Prof Alyn Morice said: "Cialis relaxes the blood vessels, which enables blood to flow through the penis and create an erection. But in Catherine's case, it helps relax arteries in her lungs."
Catherine, whose dose was increased when she developed a tolerance to the drug, said: "Right now I am happy to be alive and feeling well. I feel great that I can see and enjoy my daughter."
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