Older Americans Report articles from October 2005

Older Americans Report archives from October 2005

If Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) really is thinking about running for president, some of his recent actions seem of a piece.(Slants & Trends)
October 7, 2005... If Sen. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) really is thinking about running for president, some of his recent actions seem of a piece. The brouhaha over whether the physician-lawmaker tried to play the market by selling his stock in Hospital Corporation of...

FDA plans hearing to gauge need for stronger limits on drug ads.
October 7, 2005... Twenty years after it let drug companies pitch their products directly to consumers and eight years after it explained how to do this on television and radio, the Food and Drug Administration wants to know if it should review such ads more...

Court torn on letting states set policy on using drugs to hasten death.
October 7, 2005... The Supreme Court this week heard arguments over whether the Attorney General can preempt Oregon's assisted suicide law, and the justices peppered attorneys for both sides with questions. Supporters of the law were confident, however, that the...

Living in a facility or aging at home, cost of care continues to rise.
October 7, 2005... Nursing homes are expensive, and the rates paid by private-pay patients keep rising, but home health and personal care services are not cheap either, according to the latest survey by the Mature Market Institute at MetLife. Each day in a...

Stem cell bank created.
October 7, 2005... The National Institutes of Health has created a National Stem Cell Bank at the WiCell Research Institute in Wisconsin, consolidating the cell lines approved for research with federal dollars at a cost of $16 million over four years. NIH...

Parkinsons advocates on guard.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2005... As usual, the Senate Appropriations Committee failed to include money for the Neurotoxin Exposure Treatment Research Program in the Defense Department budget. The House has approved $26.5 million for the program, which investigates the effect...

Fake news scored.(Brief Article)
October 7, 2005... The government may not hire people to impersonate reporters, says the Government Accountability Office, which investigated the use of video news releases by the Education Department. "To constitute a legitimate information dissemination...

Part D premiums may rise abruptly in 2008, but only time will tell.
October 7, 2005... Many Medicare drug plans are offering modest premiums next year, as the program gets under way. It is not clear, however, whether these relatively low prices can be maintained, because in 2008, plans that set their premiums too low will be at...

Displaced seniors need more help with Katrina-induced transitions.(Housing)
October 7, 2005... Compared with other Gulf Coast evacuees, senior citizens are more likely to suffer "transitional trauma" that makes them unwilling to leave the New Orleans area or temporary housing shelters near the city, a housing expert says. After...

Consolidation trends will continue, experts tell conference attendees.(Housing)
October 7, 2005... Consolidations in assisted living and independent living should continue due to surging real estate values and an economic climate more favorable to large companies, experts said at a Washington, D.C., conference in late September. Small...

Emergency plans should identify at-risk seniors and their needs.(Housing)
October 7, 2005... The U.S. needs a national emergency plan that reflects the needs of older Americans, while local agencies must do their part by maintaining lists of seniors requiring help in emergencies, a Senate panel was told this week. Federal agencies...

FDA: email notices.(Federal Register)
October 7, 2005... Draft guidance. The Food and Drug Administration says makers of medical products may use email and other electronic methods to communicate certain product information, "such as for recalls and drug safety." Comments are due Nov. 29 and may be...

HHS: infrastructure data.(Federal Register)(United States. Department of Health and Human Services)(Brief Article)
October 7, 2005... Information collection. The Department of Health and Human Services seeks emergency clearance to implement a Critical Infrastructure Data System so it can "analyze information from a variety of health services facilities regarding working...

SSA: reinstatement of disability benefits.(Federal Register)(United States. Social Security Administration)(Brief Article)
October 7, 2005... Final rule. The Social Security Administration makes it easier for people who have lost eligibility for disability benefits under titles II and XVI due to gainful work activity to be reinstated if they again lose their ability to work....

SSA: reviewing disability claims.(Federal Register)
October 7, 2005... The Social Security Administration extends its deadline for testing new ways of handling disability claims under titles II and XVI (OAR, Aug. 5, p. 248). These include using a single decision-maker, thus dispensing with the need for medical...

SSA: Ticket to Work.(Federal Register)
October 7, 2005... Proposed rule. The Social Security Administration gives people with disabilities more options under the Ticket to Work program in terms of their access to employment support services. Comments are due Dec. 29 and may be made at...

VA: inpatient and skilled nursing charges.(Federal Register)
October 7, 2005... The Department of Veterans Affairs updates its payment rates for acute inpatient and sub-acute skilled nursing care. Contact: Romona Greene, (202) 254-0361. Federal Register, Sept. 28, p. 56773.

Calendar update.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
October 7, 2005... TALKING ABOUT DRUGS. The National Legislative Association on Prescription Drug Prices will meet Oct. 21 in Charleston, W.Va. Speakers include John Abramson, author of Overdo$ed America, and Nancy Atkins, chair of the National Association of...

Vote on Stem Cell Research delayed until 2006 despite wide support.
October 28, 2005... Despite support by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act (S. 471) will not come up for a vote this year, disappointing advocates for people with Parkinson's disease, who were elated this spring when...

In hurricanes' wake, funders offer help for immediate needs, system redesign.
October 28, 2005... As the earth's climate changes, will hurricanes, heat waves and other natural calamities become more frequent? And if so, what should the aging and disability networks do in response--or rather, what should the networks do now, in order to be...

Collaborating on Alzheimer's.
October 28, 2005... COLLABORATING ON ALZHEIMER'S. The Alzheimer's Association and the National Council of La Raza will work together to raise awareness of dementia issues. Pilot programs in Miami and El Paso, Texas, will train lay health workers, known in the...

Collaborating further.(Brief Article)
October 28, 2005... COLLABORATING FURTHER. Ten years ago, the Los Angeles chapter of the Alzheimer's Association began working with Kaiser Permanente to raise awareness among health care workers about dementia issues and to link Kaiser members to sources of...

Mental health grants awarded.
October 28, 2005... MENTAL HEALTH GRANTS AWARDED. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has awarded $13.2 million to 11 groups to foster mental health among people over 60. The Cuyahoga City Community Mental Health Board in Cleveland, for...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
October 28, 2005... A name was misspelled in a story about the FDA's regulation of drugs ("Flood of Drug Alerts Underscores Need for Stronger Oversight, Advocates Say," Oct. 21, p. 329). The director of the Health Research Group at Public Citizen is Sidney Wolfe.

Group calls for more consumer rights before promoting LTC insurance.
October 28, 2005... Keeping people off Medicaid by getting them to purchase long-term care insurance has great appeal on Capitol Hill. Before providing any more incentives, however, lawmakers should back a set of consumer protections promulgated by the National...

National commissioners group charges for model insurance laws, regulations.
October 28, 2005... Lawmakers who favor the wider use of long-term care insurance have incorporated elements of model laws promulgated by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners into their proposals. Anyone other than a government official who wants to...

Setting standards on Home Health.
October 28, 2005... SETTING STANDARDS ON HOME HEALTH. The National Quality Forum has endorsed 15 performance measures for the home health care industry, including looking at changes in how well people can get around, bathe and transfer between bed and chair. Other...

Nursing home group sues California over speed of investigations.
October 28, 2005... A citizens group has sued the California Department of Health Services, demanding that it comply with a 10-day deadline for responding to complaints of substandard care and noting that officials did not respond to one complaint until months...

HHS places orders for bird flu vaccine even though product may not work.
October 28, 2005... As bird flu spreads from Asia to Europe, U.S. officials are trying to stay one step ahead, because if the virus mutates, millions of people may be at risk. It is not clear, however, why HHS is trying to stockpile vaccines against the virus...

Advocates want new housing fund without ban on grantee activity.(Housing)
October 28, 2005... A bill just approved by the House of Representatives would provide a new source of funding for affordable senior housing. But under one provision in the plan, many experienced non-profits would be denied access to the funds. The House Oct....

Partners launch effort to increase training of service coordinators.(Brief Article)
October 28, 2005... Service coordinators affiliated with senior housing programs have an opportunity to gain new skills through a partnership involving Ohio State University. The online Professional Service Coordinator Certificate program brings together OSU...

Senate approves 2006 HUD bill, rejects termination of CDBG.(Community Development Block Grant)(Brief Article)
October 28, 2005... President Bush's plan to terminate the Community Development Block Grant appears dead following Senate action in late October. Senators approved $3.8 billion for CDBG in a fiscal 2006 bill to fund Department of Housing and Urban Development...

Senate rejects two proposals to increase home energy aid.(Brief Article)
October 28, 2005... The Senate this week rejected two plans to increase funding for a program that helps senior citizens and others pay their heating bills. Members did not pass a plan by Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) to allocate an extra $1.27 billion for the...

CMS: health support demo.(Federal Register)
October 28, 2005... CMS: Health support demo. Information collection. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is launching the Medicare Health Support Program under which eight organizations will help fee-for-service beneficiaries with congestive heart...

DOT: in-flight oxygen.(Federal Register)
October 28, 2005... DOT: In-flight oxygen. Proposed rule. The Department of Transportation extends until Jan. 30, 2006, a proposal to require airlines to provide in-flight medical oxygen without charge and to permit the use of respiratory assistive devices....

HUD: manufactured housing.(Federal Register)
October 28, 2005... HUD: Manufactured housing. Proposed rule. The Department of Housing and Urban Development sets forth a protocol for resolving disputes between manufacturers, retailers and installers of manufactured housing when defects are found and creates a...

HUD: Sec. 8 operating costs.(Federal Register)
October 28, 2005... HUD: Sec. 8 operating costs. The Department of Housing and Urban Development calculates the rate at which landlords' operating costs have risen so it can adjust how much rent they can charge in 2006 under Sec. 8. Effective Feb. 11. Contact:...

SSA: ticket to work.(Federal Register)
October 28, 2005... SSA: Ticket to Work. The Social Security Administration will hold a Town Hall Meeting Nov. 4 in Irvine, Calif., in concert with its proposal to give people with disabilities more options for working without losing their disability benefits...

VA: dependency and indemnity.(Federal Register)
October 28, 2005... VA: Dependency and indemnity. To make its regulations easier to understand, the Department of Veterans Affairs is rewriting its rules regarding payments to surviving parents, children and spouses, known as dependency and indemnity. Comments on...

AFAR: various programs.(Funding Opportunities)
October 28, 2005... AFAR: Various programs. The Alliance for Aging Research in New York has six funding opportunities. * Beeson Career Development Awards are for academic physicians; the deadline is Nov. 23. * Research Grants help junior faculty do...