MEDICAL DEBT

Debt resulting from medical bills deters people from seeking future care, which can result in the need for more expensive treatment later on. In addition, medical debt can affect the overall financial security of families and undermine their economic stability. These are some of the findings from The Access Projects work with community organizations across the country to examine the consequences of medically-related debt for individuals and families.

Do you have medical debt?
The Access Project’s Medical Debt Resolution Program may be able to help. Please complete our intake form and someone from our program will respond with information and assistance. The form may be filled out electronically using our online form or, print out a .pdf version and return it to us by email info@accessproject.org or fax 617 654-9922.
The Access Project Testifies at Congressional Hearing on Medical Bankruptcy & Medical Debt
Mark Rukavina, Executive Director of The Access Project, testified on July 17, 2007 at the hearing "Working Families in Financial Crisis: Medical Debt and Bankruptcy" of the House Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law. The hearing focused on medical debt as a contributor to personal bankruptcy. In his testimony, Mr. Rukavina described how the financial burden of health care costs sometimes results in medical debt. He presented information on the prevalence of medical debt, conveyed how it serves as a barrier to health care and explained how it tarnished people's credit He urged regulators to prevent involuntary medical debt from ruining people's credit reports and scores by prohibiting medical providers, and their agents, from reporting such debt to credit agencies.


Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

Republicans giving healthcare short shrift, Huckabee says

After a slight delay caused by Hurricane Gustav, the Republican National Convention got underway Tuesday night. But one former presidential candidate has been griping about the amount of attention healthcare is receiving from the Grand Old Party.

Arkansas Governor and former Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee said Tuesday at a forum on obesity that he's disappointed with his party over its lack of attention to healthcare issues. He also discussed the difficulty he had garnering any attention for the subject and criticized his fellow Republican also-rans for dodging a healthcare forum in Iowa during the campaign, according to The Hill newspaper.


Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

Incorporating Home Health Aides into the Care Team

The final report’s executive summary
A research brief outlining the study’s findings (pdf)
The implementation manual (pdf)

Home health agencies that want to improve staff retention and client outcomes will find some unexpected results and useful lessons in a report recently posted to the US HHS/ASPE Office of Disability, Aging and Long-Term Care Policy website.

Home Health Aide (HHA) Partnering Collaborative Evaluation: Final Report (pdf) assesses the impact of an effort to truly incorporate home health aides into care teams. The initiative was implemented in 2003 by the Visiting Nurse Service of New York (VNSNY) and several of its licensed agency partners.


Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

Webinar to Describe Best Practices in Retention

Directors of nursing, human resource staff, and administrators of nursing homes can learn about how to reduce turnover at a free technical assistance webinar on September 25.

Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

Hurricane Gustav: Nursing home evacuations run smoothly this time

In stark contrast to three years ago, when the elderly, and nursing home residents in particular, were especially hard hit by Hurricane Katrina, authorities were reporting smooth evacuation processes took thousands of elderly out of harm's way.

Officials reported three deaths related to "healthcare facility" evacuations but did not specify where they occurred. None of the three were believed to have perished due to rain, wind or other storm effects from Gustav.

Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

Long-Term Care Providers Form Coalition for Capital Access

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3 -- Long-term care facilities from across the country are forming the Coalition for Senior Healthcare Reform, an organization that seeks to improve the quality of healthcare for seniors by ensuring access to capital for long-term care, assisted living and skilled nursing facilities.
Over 230 facilities in 21 states have joined the Coalition that seeks to improve existing facilities, replace outdated ones and build desperately-needed facilities for America's aging population primarily through the support and improvement of the Federal Housing Administration's Section 232 mortgage insurance program.
"Mortgage insurance through FHA doesn't just help individual homeowners, it's a major source of credit enhancement for long-term care facilities, too," said Coalition Chairman Ira Smedra, President of the Los Angeles-based ARBA Group. "The FHA Section 232 program allows facilities to renovate and refinance and is a vital tool for building new facilities to support the growing number of seniors who need care."


Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

‘They’re living proof recovery is possible’

Unconditional family support and great medical care still couldn’t coax Betsy Kirk out of her small world.


How could people understand what it’s like to experience the unpredictable and dramatic mood swings associated with bipolar illness? Even she couldn’t accept the diagnosis.

That is, until she found others with life stories that sound like hers.

“I met people who had gone through the same or graver situations than myself,” she said. “It made a huge difference.”

That difference was a nine-week program designed to show people struggling with mental illness how they can manage their symptoms and lead regular lives.


Norman DeLisle, MDRC
"With Liberty and Access for All!"
GrandCentral: 517-589-4081
MDRC Website: http://www.copower.org/
LTC Blog: http://ltcreform.blogspot.com/
Recovery: http://therecoveringlife.blogspot.com/
Change: http://prosynergypsc.blogspot.com/

Study Reveals Cultural Differences In Attitudes Towards Caring For People With Dementia

Full Article-

People of south Asian or Black Caribbean origin are far more likely to
hold a 'traditional' view of caregiving than White British people, new
research shows.


The study, published in the September issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry,
found that south Asian and Black Caribbean carers of people with
dementia are more likely to perceive their caring role as natural,
expected and virtuous.

In contrast, White British people are
more likely to hold a 'non-traditional' caregiving ideology, deriving
little or no reward from such a relationship and believing their own
lives are put 'on hold' while they perform caring duties.

Understanding the Progression of Care Commitment

Full Article-

Tacoma, WA
The chart below illustrates the relationship of informal care to formal care. As care needs increase, both in the number of hours required and in the number or intensity of activities requiring help, there is a greater need for the services of formal caregivers. Unfortunately, many informal caregivers become so focused on their task they don't realize they are getting in over their heads and they have reached the point where some or complete formal caregiving is necessary. Or the informal caregiver may recognize the need for paid, professional help but does not have the money to pay for it.

It is the job of a care manager or a financial adviser or an attorney to recognize this need with the client caregiver and provide the necessary counsel to protect the caregiver from overload. An overloaded caregiver is likely to develop depression and/or physical ailments and could end up needing long-term care as well. Or the consequences of not being able to cope with caregiving might even result in an early death for the caregiver.

SAGE’s Fourth National Conference on LGBT Aging

Full Article-

It’s About Time: LGBT Aging in a Changing World
SAGE’s Fourth National Conference on LGBT Aging
October 12 - 14, 2008
New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge

The Clock is Ticking. Over the next quarter century, the number of seniors in America is projected to grow geometrically from 12% to 20% of the total population. Since 6-8% of these individuals are likely to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT), by the year 2030, LGBT seniors age 65 and above are expected jump from 2.5 million to as many as 4.7 million. The current generation of LGBT seniors differs from their heterosexual counterparts in profound ways:

Twice as likely to live alone
Half as likely to have life partners or significant others
Half as likely to have no close relatives to call for help; and
Four times less likely to have children to help them.