Healthcare Delivery
See how innovative models of healthcare delivery are designed to improve outcomes and experiences for aging Americans.
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Medicare 101: What Does It Cover & How Much Does It Cost?
Key Takeaways: Medicare has four parts: Part A covers hospital and inpatient care, Part B covers doctor visits and outpatient services, Part C (Medicare Advantage) bundles A and B through private insurers, and Part D covers prescription drugs. Eligibility comes through three main paths: turning 65 with a 10-year work history, receiving SSDI for 24 months, or a qualifying diagnosis of ESRD or ALS. ...
How Ambient Intelligence is Giving Doctors Time Back With Their Patients
Dr. Sarah Coleman's story represents thousands of healthcare providers facing similar documentation challenges. She had just finished seeing Mrs. Peterson, an 87-year-old patient with diabetes, heart disease, and early dementia—a complex case requiring careful coordination between multiple specialists. In the past, documenting such a visit would have taken Dr. Coleman 20 minutes after the appointm...
Who Pays? The Cost of Long-Term Care in the United States
Long-term care includes an array of services that help people with activities of daily living (ADLs), such as bathing, dressing, and eating. These services may include home health care, nursing home care, personal care, homemaker services, transportation, and other supports that allow older adults and people with disabilities to live safely and with dignity. Nearly 70% of older Americans will nee...
Reform Check: Are Rebate Aggregators Changing How PBMs Do Business?
Over the last decade, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) have become highly consolidated and vertically integrated, playing a central role in negotiating drug rebates on behalf of health plans. In recent years, however, PBMs have increasingly shifted this function to newly created entities known as rebate aggregators. Launched by the three largest PBMs, these aggregators now negotiate billions of do...
Healthcare Service Delivery for Older Adults: A Landscape of Programs and Funding
IntroductionAs the population of older adults in the United States grows, so will the challenges associated with ensuring older adults can access healthcare services. Policymakers and stakeholders must work together to ensure the nation’s healthcare service delivery system supports the evolving and complex needs of older adults and promotes healthy aging.Healthcare for older adults has historicall...
Hardwiring Best Practices for Safe Mobility and Delirium Prevention in Older Adult Patients
IntroductionThis case study, featuring the University of Alabama Birmingham Hospital, underscores how deliberate system redesign can embed evidence-based mobility and delirium prevention strategies into routine care. This approach improves outcomes for older adults — reducing complications, length of stay, and post-acute care needs — and offers a scalable model to transform front-line workflows ac...
The Aging of America Tests the U.S. Healthcare System
The aging of America is placing unprecedented pressure on the U.S. healthcare system, as aging populations strain healthcare systems with a higher prevalence of chronic conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease. Within the aging population in healthcare, additional challenges are emerging—1 in 4 older adults experience a fall each yea...
Implementing Age-Inclusive Telehealth in Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Settings
Integrating telehealth into post-acute and long-term care (PALTC) settings is essential for addressing the unique healthcare challenges faced by older adults. This guide outlines the benefits of telehealth, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its adoption, and provides practical steps for implementing and sustaining age-inclusive telehealth services.Impact of the COVID-19 PandemicThe pandemic a...
Leading the Way in Geriatric Emergency Care: The VA’s Patient-Centered Innovation
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is on a transformative journey leading the nation in geriatric emergency care, dedicated to providing patient-centered care initiated in VA Emergency Departments (ED). The catalyst for this journey was a compelling demographic trend, marked by a notably older adult patient population. Within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), 50% of patients seen in t...
The Gold Standard in Geriatric Emergency Department Care
In response to the growing number of older adults utilizing emergency department (ED) services, UC San Diego Health established the first Geriatric Emergency Department (GED) in California. This initiative, supported by a partnership with West Health, led to the creation of the Gary and Mary West Senior Emergency Care Unit (SECU), a dedicated space within the ED for geriatric care. The SECU has se...