Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

Plus:  You've got no mail, doctors tell patients.

In a partnership with six states, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is executing an education and outreach program that encourages Americans to shoulder some of the burden for their long-term care needs, HHS announced on Sept. 25.

HHS selected Georgia, Massachusetts, Texas, Michigan, Nebraska and South Dakota to participate in its "Own Your Future" program. "Governors of the six participating states will send letters to all households containing residents who are between the ages of 45 [and] 70, promoting awareness of aging needs and encouraging them to order a free Long-Term Care Planning Kit," HHS says.
 
The kit contains information about Medicare and Medicaid benefits and outlines ways older adults can plan ahead, HHS explains. The kit also lists "legal issues to consider and provides guidance on how to assess private financing options. The letters from the governors are expected to reach a total of approximately 5.8 million households during the coming year," HHS adds.

Doctor-Patient E-Communication Growth Slow-Going

Only one in four doctors (24 percent) use e-mail to communicate with patients about their health issues and medication, up from one in five doctors in 2000-2001, according to a new report from the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC).

This measly growth in patient e-communication pales in comparison to the rapid growth in use of information technology for prescriptions and accessing patient notes, HSC says.

Four out of five patients would like to communicate with their doctors via e-mail, according to public opinion surveys noted by HSC. Meanwhile, a new federal commission, the American Health Information Community, has targeted secure online communication between doctors and patients as a "breakthrough" technology that should grow quickly--especially for patients with chronic conditions.