Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between hearing loss, cognitive status, and a range of health outcomes over a period of 2 years in a sample of older adults who are enrolled in Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, which is a Medicare/Medicaid beneficiary program for individuals who are nursing home…

Wage differentials across college majors are huge and have been increasing. The type of college education becomes important for college students in terms of future earnings. Understanding the treatment effect of major choice in a certain occupation is difficult because of the sorting behavior and the effect of occupation choice. In order to…

Purpose: This study attempts to determine the associations between postdischarge environmental (PDE) and socioeconomic (SES) factors and early readmission to hospitals. Design and Methods: This study was a cohort study using the 2001 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey and Medicare claims for the period from 2001 to 2002. The participants were…

Parents of children with special needs are beginning to realize that a home designed for their child who might now use a wheelchair may benefit them as well in the future as they "Age in Place". As the boomers age and Medicare and Medicaid seem to possibly decline in the not so distant future as a source of funding for elderly and special needs…

Purpose: To identify racial/ethnic differences in retention of older adults at 3 levels of participation in a prospective observational study: telephone, in-home assessments, and home visits followed by blood draws. Design and Methods: A prospective study of 1,000 community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years and older included a…

In this Gerontological Society of America-sponsored Congressional Briefing Seminar, authorities from several disciplines summarize history, rationale, strengths, weaknesses, and future challenges of Medicare program. In current arena of health care reform, role of Medicare is far from certain, and it is crucial to understand and confront multitude…

Although most Americans know that the U.S. population is aging, they are far less informed about the reality of providing elders with personal care, health care, and social support. Families--particularly women--have always been critical in providing elder care, but the entry of so many women into the paid labor force has made elder care…

Experience gathered to date confirms that capitation of Medicare does not necessarily decrease quality of health care and may in fact encourage an improvement in health care quality. Incentives inherent in capitated reimbursement are threefold. First, practitioners, by not receiving more payment for more service, are discouraged from providing…

Describes modules on Social Security and Medicare for gerontology policy courses. Discusses collaborative exercises in which students explore Internet resources on Social Security and health care finance, identity major concerns about reforms, and enact scenarios about retirees with varying degrees of income and health care security. (Contains 33…

The aim of the current study was to examine the interactive effects of depressive symptoms and lower extremity functioning on social participation for a group of moderately to severely disabled older women. The study used a cross-sectional community based sample, enrolled in the Women's Health and Aging Study I, randomly selected from the Centers…

Describes two points of view regarding age-related public programs (Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security): that of devolutionists who would curtail them and safety netters who maintain the government's role is indispensable. Uses Relative Deprivation theory as a framework for teaching public policy about aging. (SK)

Discusses positive and negative effects of five federal health promotion initiatives: Medicare Prevention Benefits, Surgeon General's Reports, Healthy People 2000 and 2001, Guide to Clinical Preventive Services, and Put Prevention into Practice Campaign. Recommends additional research and coordination with state and private sector agencies.…

Two representatives in United States House of Representatives look at population trends and aging in America, describing the role they would like federal government to take in the future. Discusses issues related to older workers, retirement, local efforts, Medicare, preventive medicine, long-term care, and rights of the elderly. (NB)

An analysis of data from the National Health Interview Survey shows consistent and substantial improvements in the relative health of the aged from 1961-81. Explanations for this trend include cohort effects, Medicare and Medicaid, and other programs for the aged. Increasing health service needs should be partially offset by this trend.…

Discusses the contours of population aging, especially the baby boom generation, and the political and economic changes in regard to the rapidly aging U.S. population. Focuses on entitlements such as social security and Medicare. Seeks to broaden national discourse on the aging of the baby boom cohorts through basic questions and clarification of…