Visualizing Health Policy: Medicare and End-of-Life Care
This Visualizing Health Policy infographic, produced in partnership with the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), provides a snapshot of Medicare and end-of-life care.
View the Latest: End of Life
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Serious Illness in Late Life: The Public’s Views and Experiences
ReportIn context of the rapidly growing number of older adults in the U.S. and increasing challenges that this population faces, the Kaiser Family Foundation conducted a large scale, nationally representative telephone survey to better understand people’s expectations about later life and efforts they’ve taken to plan for if they become seriously ill. To learn more about the experiences of those with serious illness specifically, this survey also included interviews with adults who are either personally…
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The Rising Cost of Living Longer: Analysis of Medicare Spending by Age for Beneficiaries in Traditional Medicare
ReportThis analysis provides a detailed look at per person Medicare spending on the nearly 30 million beneficiaries over age 65 who are enrolled in the traditional Medicare program. Among the key findings of the report is that per person spending rises with age, peaking at age 96. But this rise is not entirely explained by Medicare spending on end of life care, which declines with age. What Medicare spends money on also changes as beneficiaries…
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Kaiser/Economist Survey Highlights Americans’ Views and Experiences with End-of-Life Care, With Comparisons to Residents of Italy, Japan and Brazil
News ReleaseHalf of Americans -- including nearly six in ten of those in fair or poor health – say people in the U.S. have too little control over their end-of-life medical decisions, finds a new Kaiser Family Foundation/Economist survey examining views and experiences with end-of-life care in the U.S. and three other nations. The cross-country survey and related journalism in The Economist’s April 29 issue highlight Americans’ experiences and opinions about aging and end-of-life care and…
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10 FAQs: Medicare’s Role in End-of-Life Care
Fact SheetAbout eight of 10 of the 2.6 million people who died in the US in 2014 were people on Medicare, making Medicare the largest insurer of health care provided during the last year of life. These Frequently Asked Questions explain Medicare’s role in or coverage of end-of-life care, advance care planning, advance directives, and hospice care. They also provide information on Medicare spending on end-of-life care, changes to the physician fee schedule, and how related issues arose…
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What is Medicare’s Role in End-of-Life Care?
News ReleaseMedicare plays an integral role in end-of-life care, an issue that is emotionally-charged and easily politicized. About three-quarters of the 2.5 million Americans who die each year are ages 65 and older, and covered by Medicare at the time of their death, yet policy issues related to Medicare and end-of-life care are often poorly understood. As policymakers consider whether and how Medicare should pay physicians and other health care professionals for talking to Medicare beneficiaries…
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Shifting Views on Same-Sex Marriage, Marijuana and End-of-Life Issues
From Drew AltmanIn this column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman examines three areas of American life where public attitudes have been steadily changing – same sex marriage, marijuana, and end of life issues – and discusses the implications for policy and law.
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Shifting Views on Same-Sex Marriage, Marijuana and End-of-Life Issues
News ReleaseIn his latest column for The Wall Street Journal’s Think Tank, Drew Altman examines three areas of American life where public attitudes have been steadily changing – same sex marriage, marijuana, and end of life issues - and discusses the implications for policy and law. All previous columns by Drew Altman are available online.
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New Report on the “Rising Cost of Living Longer” Details Medicare Spending by Age
News ReleaseA new report, The Rising Cost of Living Longer: Analysis of Medicare Spending by Age for Beneficiaries in Traditional Medicare, from the Kaiser Family Foundation takes a detailed look at per person Medicare spending by age and by service among the nearly 30 million people covered by traditional Medicare in 2011
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Analysis Finds End-of-Life Medicare Spending Declines With Age Among Seniors
News ReleaseAmong beneficiaries who died in 2014, Medicare spent significantly more per person on medical services for seniors in their late sixties and early seventies than on older beneficiaries, according to a new data note from the Kaiser Family Foundation. The analysis comes at a time when physicians can now be reimbursed by Medicare for end-of-life care discussions with their patients. The analysis of Medicare claims data through 2014 finds that among those who died in…