Some Fresno Medicare Beneficiaries To Participate in House Call Demonstration Project
Several hundred Fresno County residents likely will participate in a Medicare demonstration project in which doctors make house calls to the sickest patients to avoid hospitalizations, the Fresno Bee reports.
The demonstration started Oct.1 and will last for three years. At that time, Medicare officials will examine hospitalization data for the 15,000 receiving house calls with data from 15,000 seniors who have similar medical conditions but did not receive house calls.
CMS has contracted with Care Level Management in Southern California to provide routine house calls once a month or more depending on the severity of the illness, as well as access to a physician 24 hours a day, seven days a week (Anderson, Fresno Bee, 11/28).