Industry Articles
Industry Articles Home > Improving Quality of life for Seniors News
|
Recovery Act funds will help improve seniors' health, save money on Medicare 2009-12-21 Community-level health education for seniors will be funded by Recovery Act monies, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius announced last week. State aging and health departments will receive $27 million, Sebelius said. The departments will use the funds to implement training courses for seniors called Chronic Disease Self-Management Programs. The courses have been extensively researched, HHS said, and have been shown to improve "participants' overall health and energy levels and result in savings to Medicare through fewer hospital stays." The programs are designed to be delivered by non-health professionals at venues like senior centers and senior living communities, HHS added. The $27 million grant "is about getting money to communities to help seniors manage chronic conditions that threaten their ability to remain in their own homes," Secretary Sebelius said. There are more than 1,200 community-level senior assistance offices around the country, and all will be able to benefit from the Recovery Act grant. Lowering Medicare costs is a goal of the grant; the Commonwealth Fund estimates that Medicare expenditures will grow 70 percent between 2005 and 2010.  |
