The Elderly and Surgery

A growing number of studies suggest that older patients who have serious operations are more likely to be left with some degree of mental impairment after the procedure is over. The same studies also found evidence that minor or less invasive surgeries seem to be safer. Even though most older patients have surgery as a means to save their lives, researchers now believe that before a serious surgical procedure is preformed, doctors should discuss the possibility of prolonged mental impairment thoroughly with the patient and family members.

New Medicare Handbook Sent to 34 Million
New and updated information about Medicare benefits included in Medicare & You 2001. Medicare's largest annual mailing to beneficiaries will take place this September and October when more than 34 million copies of the Medicare & You2001 handbook are mailed to Medicare beneficiaries all across the United States. The mailing is one part of Medicare's comprehensive effort to help them understand their health care options, whether through original Medicare or Medicare+Choice plans.

New Study Shows that Parkinson's Might Also Affect the Nerves Outside the Brain
Researchers from the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke (NNDS), have found that Parkinson's disease, which is caused by the loss of certain brain cells, may affect nerves throughout other organs of the body. This breakthrough discovery may change the way we treat the disease and ultimately lead to a better understanding of what causes it.

Notch Baby Question Lives On
One of the most frequent requests we get from our readers is for information about the Social Security Notch Babies. While we can’t comment on the equity of the provision or the possibility of future legislation, we can give you information about the history of the provision and a report of a special commission to study the issue in 1994. In the Final Report on the Social Security "Notch" Issue the commission concluded:

"...benefits paid to those in the "Notch" years are equitable, and no remedial legislation is in order. This opinion is based entirely on the Commission's conclusions in relation to issues of fairness. It is not based on any concern as to the substantial fiscal consequences of any possible remediation."

CSRS and FERS Handbook for Personnel and Payroll Offices
Fedamerica.Com has a series of handbooks for federal employees, including a CSRS and FERS Handbook used by personnel offices. This handbook is used to advise Federal agencies about various aspects of benefits administration. You can download/view each chapter. You can also download the entire handbook as one pdf file at the end of this document.

America's Seniors and Medicare
The National Economic Council issued a report entitled America’s Seniors and Medicare which has a lot of valuable information for the ongoing debate over prescription drugs. It includes a State-by-State analyses of current Medicare coverage.

American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Livable Communities: An Evaluation Guide - February 1999
We recently came across a 118-page book by Patricia Baron Pollak of Cornell University that provides residents, organizations, and local governments with a tool to assess a community's "livability." Numerous studies confirm that as people age, they want to remain in their home communities. However, these same studies also show that people often find "aging in place" difficult because the available services and physical environment of the community are not able to accommodate their particular needs. Using information derived from surveys of older people's concerns about their communities, the Guide focuses on eight areas: public transportation; driving; walking; housing; shopping; and municipal features, services, and leisure facilities. The Guide contains a survey instrument addressing each topic and a bibliography targeted to each topic.

The Association for American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) Tells Doctors To Get Out Of Medicare
In an unprecedented move, AAPS issued an urgent press release calling for members to get out of the Medicare program. According to the press release, doctors should leave Medicare for the sake of patients and the integrity of the profession. The association believes that Medicare endangers seniors, punishes the best doctors and creates an environment in which doctors are forced to spend less time treating patients and more time complying with government regulations. Furthermore, doctors are afraid to treat difficult cases or take on new patients because of Medicare rules and government threats. Dr. Janet M. Orient, AAPS Executive Director stated that "Medicare is socialized medicine at its worst. It's time for doctors to stand up for their patients and send government out the door."

12 States Sign on for Medicare Fraud Prevention
The Computer Sciences Corp. won a $26.8 million contract to develop an application to detect possible mispayments and potential fraudulent activities.

Medicare To Increase Choice For People With Disabilities Through Local Projects
HCFA Administrator Nancy-Ann DeParle today announced demonstration projects in four states to help Medicare beneficiaries with disabilities exercise greater choice and control in meeting their personal needs for wheelchairs and related equipment.

Bill Moyers' Special On Death And Dying Airing PBS 
Bill Moyers will host a PBS television series "On Our Own Terms: Moyers on Dying". The series deals with end of life decisions and other similar issues and will be aired from September 10-13. It is hoped that this series will encourage the public to seek out more information about end of life care in the U.S. PBS is also planning to air "With Eyes Open", a follow-up series, which consists of four half-hour programs designed to address issues raised by "On Our Own Terms".

Bush Announces MediCARxES (Medicare Choice and Access to Prescription Drugs For Every Senior)
George Bush announced his two-part plan to provide more prescription drug coverage for seniors. The first part of his plan, which is intended for low income seniors, proposes that until the Medicare program can be changed, states be given $12 billion a year for 4 years to fund any new or existing state prescription drug plans. In order to put the second part of his plan into action, Bush says that new legislation must be passed. This new legislation would add prescription drug coverage to the federal Medicare program and allow for $110 billion to be put aside for other program changes.

Read a summary of this plan on Elderweb, or read Bush’s press release here on our web site.

Hormone Replacement Therapy
A woman’s decision whether to take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) following menopause is one which is highly personal and controversial. A number of federal government health research and regulatory agencies pay close attention to studies on the risks involved in taking and or not taking different replacement therapies. Personal choice, government involvement, and other sensitive issues are presented in The Administration on Aging's selection of URL’s concerning HRT, related research, and alternative therapies.

Senior Sites Proliferate on the Web
As the Internet matures, and as the audience using the Internet reaches into the more mature population, there are more web sites that appeal to seniors. The following web sites may be thought of as commercial counterparts to FirstGov for Seniors. They provide a wealth of information and links especially designed for you.

A word of warning. Many sites like these have annoying pop-up windows and request personal information "to serve you better." We have no experience with these sites or how they use of the information they collect. You could wind up on unwanted mailing lists. Check their privacy statements carefully before you commit yourself.

Federal Workers and Social Security Benefits – The Windfall Elimination Provision
We received a number of inquiries recently about the Windfall Elimination Provision which affects federal workers who are also eligible for Social Security benefits. The Social Security benefit is reduced for federal workers with less than 30 years of work under Social Security. The link above explains the provision. There is a proposal before Congress - H.R.860 to modify the provision, but it is not clear whether this has any chance of final passage.

Campaigns Focus on Medicare Prescription Plan
With the release of presidential candidate Gore's prescription plan for seniors, the campaigns of both Gore and Bush focused on this important issue. There is information in the USA Today article in the link above, or you can get information directly from the campaign sites. The George W. Bush site has a rebuttal to the plan on Al Gore's campaign site.

Exercise Beneficial for Patients with Chronic Heart Failure
Normally, doctors recommend that patients with chronic heart failure avoid strenuous exercise. But thanks to study results recently published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association," many doctors may be changing that recommendation. The study clearly shows that 20 minutes of moderate, regular exercise improves the circulation, heart function and ventricular function in patients with stable chronic heart failure.

Certificates of Deposit: Tips for Older Investors 
Important cautions from the Securities Exchange Commission about the need to carefully examine the term (especially maturity dates) of certificates of deposit. A particular area of concern are so-called "one year noncallable" CDs which may actually have long term maturity dates and tie up the money for five, ten or even twenty years. For a related article see Jane Bryant Quinn's column on this issue recently in the Washington Post.

Long-Term Care Poses Problems for Future Generations 
The large number of baby boomers will begin to reach age 65 in 2011, swelling the ranks of the elderly. In addition, more elderly people will reach advanced ages (85 and older) than in the past because of declining mortality rates. Those trends will cause the proportion of the population that is elderly, which was just under 13 percent in 1995, to rise to 20 percent in 2040. More important, the population over age 85--the segment most likely to require long-term care--will grow to over three times its current size by 2040. The Administration on Aging has put together an excellent overview of the Long-Term Care environment in America.

Researchers Find Evidence That Brain 'Plaque" Causes Alzheimers
Researchers at Rockefeller University in New York have found a link between the build-up of plaque from the beta-amyloid protein surrounding brain cells and dementia. This new development provides further support for the theory that the formation of the beta-amyloid protein may cause Alzheimer's disease.

Federal Report Recommends Stricter U.S. Nursing Home Guidelines
A new Federal study found that understaffing in nursing homes might be endangering patients. According to the study, understaffing has led to an increase in the number of reported cases of malnutrition, bedsores, and abnormal weight loss, just to mention a few. To correct the situation, the study recommends implementing stricter guidelines and hiring more nurses and nursing aides.