Federal Agency Offers $15 Million to Support Aging In Place

In yet another move signaling the federal government's intention to increase home health services, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is making $15 million available to test a new model to help seniors age in place. Read More

As Population Ages, Where Are the Geriatricians?

Geriatrics is one of the few medical specialties in the United States that is contracting even as the need increases, ranking at the bottom of the list of specialties that internal medicine residents choose to pursue. Read More   

Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program Established

The American Geriatrics Society has received a $3 million grant from the John A. Hartford Foundation to establish a Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program Coordinating Center. Read More   

CMS Issues Guide to Preventing Hospital Re-admissions Among Diverse Medicare Patients

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Office of Minority Health today issued a guide to help hospital leaders prevent re-admissions among racially and ethnically diverse Medicare beneficiaries. Read More   

New Medicaid Rule Requires Face-to-Face Doc Visits Before Home Health Services

Beginning July 1 physicians must document a face-to-face encounter with a patient to validate Medicaid coverage for home health services and medical equipment. A similar rule has long been in effect for Medicare. Read More   

Medical Advocates Can Help Guide Patients on Difficult Care Choices

There are perhaps 250 to 300 patient advocates for hire in the United States, one professional association estimates. Some advocates have clinical backgrounds and know how to navigate the health care system. Read More   

Study Finds 'Mortality Gap' Among Middle-Aged Whites

Don't blame suicide and substance abuse entirely for rising death rates among middle-aged white Americans, asserts a new study out Friday. Read More

CMS Proposes Changes to ACO Benchmarks

The CMS is proposing changes to the way it evaluates whether accountable care organizations in the Medicare Shared Savings Program actually save money. Read More

*Opinions expressed in any of the included stories or their publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Kindred Healthcare. This blog post is a compilation of news stories from other sources that have appeared during the past week.