Increased Use of Medicare Preventive Services Sought
CMS will seek to increase the use of preventive services among Medicare beneficiaries to help "close the prevention gap," agency Administrator Mark McClellan said on Friday at a luncheon briefing co-sponsored by the Galen Institute and the Council for Affordable Health Insurance, CQ HealthBeat reports. Medicare offers preventive services such as an initial physical for new beneficiaries, cardiovascular tests, cancer tests and flu vaccinations.
According to McClellan, CMS has begun to track the use of preventive services among Medicare beneficiaries to ensure that those who require such services receive them. He also said that CMS officials plan to work with community groups nationwide to increase awareness about the preventive services offered by Medicare.
McClellan said that next year Medicare likely will begin to offer health savings accounts among the coverage options for beneficiaries (Carey, CQ HealthBeat, 5/19).