Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The Med Adv companies themselves have also committed fraud.
That would not surprise me. I want to scream every time I see the commercial, I can't remember which Advantage plan it is. They say "If you only have Medicare part A and B, you're missing out. Part C covers dental and vision". It very plainly tries to fool people into thinking Medicare part C is a new thing you can get in addition to A and B. I would love to know how many people were switched to Advantage plans when they called and never even realized it.
Does anyone think we know the real statistics from The Bug? There was also Excess Mortality which is above and beyond normal all cause mortality because people steered clear of medical facilities and put off treatments and procedures due to fear or just based on the strained medical system. At one point there were articles about how Insurance companies were seeing deaths up 40% from pre-pandemic levels. Most of the reported Bug deaths were Medicare age people or just pre-Medicare age (55-64). The life insurance companies were seeing deaths among all age groups (easier and cheaper for working age to have life insurance).
Okay, so there's that...
But, now the Baby Boomers become the biggest recipients and this is the generation of "question authority" so my guess is that BB'ers scrutinize procedures a lot more than older generations and perhaps they are more open to alternatives to mainstream medicine. I am not going to go so far as to say they are healthier (but, that may also be the case). Due to this skepticism they may take more responsibility for taking care of themselves. More may choose Hospice than radical end of life (as someone else mentioned above). We now also have place where Euthanasia is legal (so, there's also that element). Older generations more akin to follow doctor's orders and not question authority... (going for all the high dollar end of life expensive stuff).... Dare I say at least BB'ers may want to reserve resources for their children and grandchildren and there could be some conscientiousness at play?
Does anyone think we know the real statistics from The Bug? There was also Excess Mortality which is above and beyond normal all cause mortality because people steered clear of medical facilities and put off treatments and procedures due to fear or just based on the strained medical system. At one point there were articles about how Insurance companies were seeing deaths up 40% from pre-pandemic levels. Most of the reported Bug deaths were Medicare age people or just pre-Medicare age (55-64). The life insurance companies were seeing deaths among all age groups (easier and cheaper for working age to have life insurance).
Okay, so there's that...
But, now the Baby Boomers become the biggest recipients and this is the generation of "question authority" so my guess is that BB'ers scrutinize procedures a lot more than older generations and perhaps they are more open to alternatives to mainstream medicine. I am not going to go so far as to say they are healthier (but, that may also be the case). Due to this skepticism they may take more responsibility for taking care of themselves. More may choose Hospice than radical end of life (as someone else mentioned above). We now also have place where Euthanasia is legal (so, there's also that element). Older generations more akin to follow doctor's orders and not question authority... (going for all the high dollar end of life expensive stuff)....
Unfortunately a lot of times it's family members that make those decisions (that's a whole other thread, how power of attorney is improperly used by our health care system....they go by what the POA wants even if the patient is alert and oriented. We see a lot of "keep my mom alive please" even when mom doesn't want that. We have people who are so frail and ill, on 5 liters of oxygen, need 2 people just to stand, and are still "Full Code", and it makes me angry.
But as far as the next generation being healthier, I haven't seen that. I see the opposite, patients coming in for rehab after strokes and diabetic amputations and dialysis who are 55, 60 years old. Our generation (I'm 61) was really the first TV dinner/junk food generation, and seems to be a lot of alcoholism, too. But Diabetes is just rampant in this age group. As is COPD and other lung issues. We are also seeing advanced dementia in this age group, something I never saw in the mid 90's when I graduated. We have half a dozen people under 70 in our smallish dementia unit. That I don't know is lifestyle, I suspect something environmental, pesticides, food additives, not really sure, but it scares me.
Unfortunately a lot of times it's family members that make those decisions (that's a whole other thread, how power of attorney is improperly used by our health care system....they go by what the POA wants even if the patient is alert and oriented. We see a lot of "keep my mom alive please" even when mom doesn't want that. We have people who are so frail and ill, on 5 liters of oxygen, need 2 people just to stand, and are still "Full Code", and it makes me angry.
But as far as the next generation being healthier, I haven't seen that. I see the opposite, patients coming in for rehab after strokes and diabetic amputations and dialysis who are 55, 60 years old. Our generation (I'm 61) was really the first TV dinner/junk food generation, and seems to be a lot of alcoholism, too. But Diabetes is just rampant in this age group. As is COPD and other lung issues. We are also seeing advanced dementia in this age group, something I never saw in the mid 90's when I graduated. We have half a dozen people under 70 in our smallish dementia unit. That I don't know is lifestyle, I suspect something environmental, pesticides, food additives, not really sure, but it scares me.
You are not really seeing the healthy people though. By definition you are seeing the unwell.
The whole ultra processed food industry has grown in the recent years. The following link is really revealing...
"Market sales data from 2006-2019 have shown that per capita UPF consumption has reached remarkably high levels in HICs, with levels significantly higher than in upper-middle income countries (UMICs) and LMICs. 6 Survey data show that UPFs contributed 42%, of dietary energy intake in Australia in 2011-2012 38 and 58% in the US in 2009-2010. 39 The contribution of UPFs to dietary energy intake is currently much lower in UMICs and LMICs than in HICs, ranging from 21.5% in Brazil in 2008-2009 41 to 29.8% in Mexico in 2012.
Surprised that UPF consumption is highest in the high income group (I thought these folks were somewhat educated) but the growth rate of penetration is highest in the lower income segment (who currently consume less of it).
"The increases in overweight and obesity rates have been mirrored by high and increasing per capita UPF and UPB sales
Don’t know, don’t care.
We pay for Medicare and 2 supplements. We have had several surgeries and ongoing care issues and it works out great. If something changes, we will deal with it then.
An estimated 28.3 million adults in the United States currently smoke cigarettes. More than 16 million Americans live with a smoking-related disease. Current smoking has declined from 20.9% (nearly 21 of every 100 adults) in 2005 to 11.5% (nearly 12 of every 100 adults) in 2021.
"Cutler’s 2019 Health Affairs study lists some legislative action that might have contributed to the slowdown in Medicare spending including the ACA, which encouraged bundled payments and accountable care organizations. However, Cutler and co-authors cited the fact that older Americans have fewer heart attacks and strokes thanks to new and fairly inexpensive medications as possibly the main reason for the spending slowdown.
“The reduction in acute cardiovascular events has been dramatic: Hospital admissions for ischemic heart disease are down 56% since 1999, and admissions for stroke have fallen by 41%,” the study said."
In other words thanks to ACA and other bit USA is finally catching up to Europe and other parts of world. Dollars spent in preventative healthcare end up as savings to system as people are healthier.
You get people to see good doctors and address chronic or other issues such as cardiovascular disease before things get out of hand.
You are not really seeing the healthy people though. By definition you are seeing the unwell.
Well, it certainly includes the unwell, but even healthy seniors get knee and hip and shoulder replacements or break an arm, and so we do have a good number of healthy people in our rehab unit. In fact, people who stayed active, ran, played tennis, etc are more likely to need the hip and knee replacement or spine surgery then the people who sat on the couch all day.
And what I can definitively speak to, is the younger and younger ages that people are becoming unwell over all. When I first started, they were almost all elderly and now there are many in their 50s and 60s. The dementia in younger people trend like I said, is the scariest to me.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
