WASHINGTON, April 14, 2008
U.S. Health System Facing Senior "Crisis"
Study Says 78 Million Baby Boomers Will Enter A System Unprepared To Meet Their Needs
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(CBS/AP)
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"We face an impending crisis as the growing number of older patients, who are living longer with more complex health needs, increasingly outpaces the number of health care providers with the knowledge and skills to care for them capably," said John W. Rowe, professor of health policy and management at Columbia University.
"For a considerable period of time, the Amerian health care system has been in denial," Rowe told Jeff Glor in The Early Show's "Early Wakeup Call" segment, "about the coming tsunami ... of geriatric care. ... This is not climate change. We CAN fix this."
Rowe headed an Institute of Medicine committee that released a report on the health care outlook for the 78 million baby boomers about to begin turning 65.
The report from the institute, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, said:
The study said Medicare may even hinder seniors from getting the best care because of its low reimbursement rates, a focus on treating short-term health problems rather than managing chronic conditions, and lack of coverage for preventive services or for health care providers' time spent collaborating with a patient's other providers.
The American Medical Association responded that seniors' access to Medicare in coming years "is threatened by looming Medicare physician payment cuts."
"This July, the government will begin steep cuts in Medicare physician payments, and 60 percent of physicians say this cut will force them to limit the number of new Medicare patients they can treat," the AMA said in a statement.
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AARP, the organization for older Americans, said the report highlights the growing need for immediate action to improve and strengthen the health care and long-term care work force.We face an impending crisis as the growing number of older patients, who are living longer with more complex health needs, increasingly outpaces the number of health care providers with the knowledge and skills to care for them capably.
John W. Rowe, professor of health policy and management at Columbia University"We know the problem, and we know how to begin to fix it," said AARP President-Elect Jennie Chin Hansen.
The group said it is endorsing a bill by Sens. Senators Barbara Boxer, D-Calif. and Susan Collins, R-Maine, intended to steer caregivers toward geriatric and long-term care roles, and create an advisory panel to analyze this critical sector and make recommendations to tackle its changing needs.
The report found there are about 7,100 doctors certified in geriatrics in the United States, one per every 2,500 older Americans.
Turnover among nurse aides averages 71 percent annually, and up to 90 percent of home health aides leave their jobs within the first two years, the report said.
But while today's elderly tend to be healthier and live longer than previous generations, people over 65 to have more complex conditions and health care needs than younger folks.
The report urged that all health care workers be trained in basic geriatric care and that schools increase training in the treatment of older patients.
The federally required minimum number of hours of training for direct-care workers should be raised from 75 to at least 120, the report said, noting that more training is required for dog groomers and manicurists than direct-care workers in many parts of the country.
And it said pay for geriatric specialists, doctors, nurses and care workers needs to be increased.
A doctor specializing in elderly care earned $163,000 on average in 2005 compared with $175,000 for a general internist, even though the geriatric specialist required more training.
The report also urged training for family members and other informal caregivers who assist the elderly.
The study was sponsored by the John A. Hartford Foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies, Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Retirement Research Foundation, California Endowment, Archstone Foundation, AARP, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation and Commonwealth Fund.
The National Academy of Sciences is an independent organization chartered by Congress to advise the government on scientific matters.
© MMVIII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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- The Health Care System is poised to control symptoms and Invoice the baby boomer''s. The system has no interest in curing anything. Cancer and Diabetes are a precursor to where medicine is heading. Control all diseases, don''t work on prevention, it the old rule of "follow the money".
- Reply to this comment
- If you want to solve any health care or retirement crisis, the first step is to get your political representatives to feel your pain. At this time the only pain they feel is from the lobbyists and campaign contributors.
- Get off the bandwagon of tax the rich to pay for the poor. This is a diversion. It''s the lottery mentality.
- Eliminate the golden pension that your politician enjoys (regardless of their performance) and put them on 401ks and IRAs.
- Eliminate the free healthcare that your politician enjoys and put them on 80/20 or 70/30 managed care administered by 4th largest health care administrator.
- outlaw lobbyists.
Then they will address the issues that you feel. - Reply to this comment
- I''''m concerned that there will not be "enough health care to go around" because too many Boomers have not worked hard enough as individuals to keep themselves healthy. Too many of my contemporaries are overweight, too many of them smoke and they don''''t get enough exercise, and we will all have to pay for their lack of responsibility.
Posted by mswolfestock at 10:54 AM : Apr 15, 2008
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I think you have it backwards. I''m not too worried about the smokers and the obese. Most of them will die before they even come close to getting their fair share of social security and medicare. The ones I''m worried about are the healthy ones that hang on forever until they eventually die of old age...they will be the ones to drain the system until it is broke. - Reply to this comment
- oladywho...I did read the Kerry Weems article as you mentioned. So? The current Health Care MESS this country is in is due to people like Tom Delay, D-ICK Cheney, and ALL those ''wonderful'' Conservatives who are ''in bed'' with the drug industry lobbyists. Big bucks for blocking legislation that would have provided an opportunity for Seniors to buy drugs and medication cheaply across our borders. Don''t give me any of your excuses for what bush and company has done to this country. We could better solve the problems bush created when he blew away the huge surplus he inherited from Bill Clinton by electing a better class of politicians than what occupies the White House now. ARE YOU BETTER OFF NOW THAN YOU WERE 8 YEARS AGO? IF YOU ARE, WHAT ARE YOU COMPLAINING ABOUT? IF YOU ARE NOT, WHY DON''T YOU WRITE YOUR CONGRESSMAN? If he or she is a Republican, fugittaboutit. Only 280 days left! Enjoy!
- Reply to this comment
- Lefty.....
Health Care Will Cost $4 Trillion (per year) by 2017
Gov''t Projects That Medical Expenses For An Aging Population Will Be 20% Of GDP. Read the other article about health care. Hint: it''s right under the picture of the capital building. - Reply to this comment
- Lay out the plan for us Obi Wan, seventy-eight million people are waiting for your wise and insightful ideas.
Posted by oladywho at 12:43 PM : Apr 15, 2008
Well now...my first impression...after reading your posting was...this person is an idiot. So I read it again to be sure I had read it correctly. Yep, I was right the first time. You are NOT above calling ME names either so what''s so special about YOU? Let me explain something to that ''pointy'' little head of yours. The cost of providing health care for ALL Americans NOT JUST 78 MILLION would not bankrupt ''the whole world'' as you put it. As I said before ...The IRAQI WAR MONEY could provided ALL THE MONEY WE WOULD HAVE NEEDED TO FUND HEALTH CARE WITH PLENTY OF IT LEFT OVER. And believe me, money helps a lot in solving most problems. Write to my congressman???? Ha!Ha!Ha! My congressman until recently was Tom Delay!! Ha!Ha! Now if you REALLY want to save money, when you or your husband ''kick the bucket''... the remaining one can set the other''s body by the curb for trash pick up. It sounds better than digging up your lovely back yard. This is Obi Wan signing off to DOOFUS follower. Ha!Ha!Ha! - Reply to this comment
- Lefty/texas,
As always, when lefties don%u2019t have a solution, no matter how simple-minded it may be, they resort to name-calling and berating and blaming. So are you running for president? Or are you just another backseat driver in the political process? When was the last time you wrote to your congressman about health care issues? What you don%u2019t seem to be able to comprehend, with all your wisdom, is that problem is so huge, there just isn%u2019t enough money to fix it. Unless you can come up with an alternate plan to fund the health care problem, my simple-minded solution suits me best. There are 78 million of us, and the cost to provide health care for us would bankrupt the whole world. With all your wisdom, though, you should be able to find a workaround for this. Lay out the plan for us Obi Wan, seventy-eight million people are waiting for your wise and insightful ideas. - Reply to this comment
- Not me. I''''m one of those liberal democrats everyone is so afraid of.
Posted by barbaraf4 at 11:24 AM : Apr 15, 2008
Well welcome to the club! I have to laugh at these Conservatives who fear us so much! They seem to live their lives in fear of everything. I guess that''s why bush and cheney are such GOOD CONSERVATIVES...THEY FEARED GOING INTO THE MILITARY. - Reply to this comment
- There are a lot of other alternatives than the HUGE BOONDOOGLE IN IRAQ created by DOOFUS and his supporters. Are you one? Posted by leftyintexas
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Not me. I''m one of those liberal democrats everyone is so afraid of. - Reply to this comment
- leftyintexas, so, what exactly is your solution. Do you actually think that if the war ended tomorrow that all those funds would go into the Medicare fund? Of course not. Those funds would go to build a bridge to nowhere in Alaska. You need to listen to oladywho. She is wise beyond her years.
Posted by barbaraf4 at 10:35 AM : Apr 15, 2008
Ha!Ha!Ha! Yeah, I really think burying your husband or wife in the backyard is NOT really such a good plan. As for the money WASTED IN IRAQ, Yeah spend it on HEALTHCARE FOR EVERYONE INCLUDING YOU...or if you wish, spend it on repairing roads and bridges, lowering pollution, improving education, etc. There are a lot of other alternatives than the HUGE BOONDOOGLE IN IRAQ created by DOOFUS and his supporters. Are you one? - Reply to this comment
- It''s not so much that all of us Boomers are responsible (as individuals) for our "health care" as it is that we are personally, individually responsible for keeping ourselves healthy and active. I''m concerned that there will not be "enough health care to go around" because too many Boomers have not worked hard enough as individuals to keep themselves healthy. Too many of my contemporaries are overweight, too many of them smoke and they don''t get enough exercise, and we will all have to pay for their lack of responsibility. My grandfather lived to be 99 years old, but he did not live that long by relying on "health care" to bail him out. He lived to be 99 because he chose to lead an active, healthy, busy life. And he didn''t eat at MacDonalds either.
- Reply to this comment
- Who is responsible for your health care? You are!
Posted by oladywho
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Ahhh...SIMPLE SOLUTIONS FROM SIMPLE MINDED PEOPLE. HOW REFRESHING! Posted by leftyintexas
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leftyintexas, so, what exactly is your solution. Do you actually think that if the war ended tomorrow that all those funds would go into the Medicare fund? Of course not. Those funds would go to build a bridge to nowhere in Alaska. You need to listen to oladywho. She is wise beyond her years. - Reply to this comment
- Firstly, Ron Paul is a sophmoric idiot
secnd, Americans want everything, they want everything now, and they want to pay nothing. They want gourmet food at McDonalds prices. The health industry is essentially run by big Pharma--I am a physician and the between the bureaucracy and the drug companies, you can''''t practice medicine--the insurance companies pay less and less and everyone is guaranteed a profit. Doctors are retiring in droves--if you think it is bad now--just wait
Posted by lfitts1 at 09:59 AM : Apr 15, 2008
What you said is very true. I know first hand. Just wait until some of these DOOFUS supporters need some major medical care and are left behind in the dust. Then let''s see how loyal they are. Ha!Ha!Ha! - Reply to this comment
- Do you really think anybody under the age of 45 who is able to get out is going to hang around for this much longer? JESUS CHRIST.
Posted by samael2014 at 07:25 AM : Apr 15, 2008
Some of us in this country might consider you a parasite, by your own definition. - Reply to this comment
- Glad I now live in England where Medical is free and After your 60 you do not even pay the $12 for Prescriptions.
I know America does not have the money for fred medical care they have illegal wars to fight
Posted by jerryomara at 05:17 AM : Apr 15, 2008
Nothing is free, ya wanker! - Reply to this comment
- Firstly, Ron Paul is a sophmoric idiot
secnd, Americans want everything, they want everything now, and they want to pay nothing. They want gourmet food at McDonalds prices. The health industry is essentially run by big Pharma--I am a physician and the between the bureaucracy and the drug companies, you can''t practice medicine--the insurance companies pay less and less and everyone is guaranteed a profit. Doctors are retiring in droves--if you think it is bad now--just wait - Reply to this comment
- HEALTH INDUSTRY!
CURE SOMETHING! ANYTHING! DONT TREAT IT CURE IT!
AMERICA STAND UP OR SHUT UP! - Reply to this comment
- Ron Paul has a better plane than any of these morons.
His views on how goverment should follow the constitution is to radical for this country to understand. Its amazing that we forget that this is the last country on earth without our constitution we would be living in a third world country. But i guess TV and self ipods are far more important. - Reply to this comment
- Who is responsible for your health care? You are!
If you don''''t have $250,000 laying around in a savings account that is earmarked for one major surgery, then do like my husband and I are planning... two holes in the back yard. The lucky one dies first. This may be seem cold hearted, but I don''''t remember getting a guarantee for life-long health care when I was born, in 1946. In fact, I didn''''t have health care coverage until I was 21 years old. I lost it when I had to choose between groceries and health insurance. The "government" can''''t afford to take care of everybody who is old. The government is funded by the people who pay taxes in this country. How much do you want to pay for my health care? No one owes me quality of life. Quit thinking somebody does. You get out of life what you put in. (period)
Posted by oladywho at 07:11 PM : Apr 14, 2008
Ahhh...SIMPLE SOLUTIONS FROM SIMPLE MINDED PEOPLE. HOW REFRESHING! I''ll bet you would rather see your tax dollars going toward something more constructive...like invading other countries, killing innocent civilians, and pouring TWO TRILLION DOLLARS DOWN ARAT HOLE. Ahhh yes... SIMPLE SOLUTIONS FROM SIMPLE MINDED PEOPLE! Only 280 days left! Enjoy! - Reply to this comment
- Just think how nice the medical system would be if it were treated as if it were a war against terrorism.
The terrorism of getting old has been wielded by the 10s of decades of the Federal government abusing and borrowing from what were overflowing social Security coffers and never bothering to repay them, much less with interest.
Maybe the IRS should be in charge of how Social Security Taxes are spent and invested? They can smell an over due penny buried 6 feet under the ground. - Reply to this comment
