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Medicare is a critical source of health insurance coverage for virtually all older women in the U.S. and for many younger women who have permanent disabilities. Today, 22 million women one in five adult women rely on Medicare for basic health insurance protection. In fact, women comprise 57% of the Medicare population. Medicare helps to make health care more affordable for older women at a time in their lives when they are most likely to…
Medicare is a critical source of health insurance coverage for virtually all older women in the U.S. and for many younger women who have permanent disabilities. Because women have longer life expectancies than men, more than half (57%) of the people covered by the program are women. In 1999, there were 21 million women on Medicare 19 million ages 65 and over and another 2 million women under age 65 with disabilities who received Social…
This report, written by Marilyn Moon and Matthew Storeygard of the Urban Institute, estimates the potential cost of targeting drug benefits to low-income Medicare beneficiaries and those with catastrophic drug expenses and discusses some of the key programmatic issues that could arise under this approach. The authors predict that a targeted and comprehensive drug benefit would likely help more than half of the 11.3 million low-income beneficiaries who lack drug coverage through Medicaid or an…
This report, a companion piece to publication #2246, presents detailed case studies of the managed care programs that enroll dual eligibles in three states: Georgia, Minnesota and Pennsylvania. Report
Over half a million duals were enrolled in Medicaid managed care programs in 1999. This report summarizes these efforts across the nation and profiles initiatives in each state. Background Paper
Medicaid's Role for Low-Income Medicare Beneficiaries An overview that identifies low-income Medicare beneficiaries (dual eligibles), how Medicaid can provide care for them, and the challenges to accessing care. Fact Sheet
Diane Rowland, executive director of the Commission, testified to the Subcommittee on Health of the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce about providing prescription drugs to seniors. Her testimony includes discussion of Medicaid's role in providing outpatient drug coverage. Testimony Chart Pack
This issue paper updates the July 1999 report and provides a general overview of federal Medicaid eligibility policy for the low-income disabled population. This paper focuses on four broad groups of individuals with disabilities: children under 18; adults under 65 who are not living in institutions; adults under 65 who are living in institutions; and adults under 65 who are also eligible for Medicare. In addition, this paper includes the new eligibility options offered under…
The American Bar Association Commission on Legal Problems of the Elderly explored the views of Medicare HMOs on enrolling and delivering services to Medicare beneficiaries with dementia. The Commission conducted detailed interviews with professionals at eight diverse Medicare+Choice organizations. Their report provides background information on health care decision-making law and the Medicare program's laws and regulations, and focuses on survey findings in six key areas: marketing, enrollment, health assessments, health care delivery, advance directives, and…
This report updates a 1997 Foundation report to assess how states are implementing financial protections for the 16 million Medicare beneficiaries who are low-income. These protections, generally referred to as "buy-in programs," help low-income Medicare beneficiaries meet Medicare's cost-sharing requirements by using state Medicaid programs to pay either all or some portion of premiums, deductibles, and coinsurance amounts. Using information collected through a survey of state Medicaid directors and consumer advocates, the update seeks to…
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