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Can health promotion programs save Medicare money?
Ron Z Goetzel1, David Shechter, Ronald J Ozminkowski
1Institute for Health and Productivity Studies, Cornell University Washington, DC 20008, USA. ron.goetzel@thomson.com
Clinical Interventions in Aging
|November 30, 2007
Summary
Preventing chronic disease in seniors can reduce healthcare costs and improve quality of life. Health promotion programs show potential for significant savings in Medicare spending.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Gerontology
- Health Economics
Background:
- Aging population drives escalating US healthcare costs, largely due to chronic diseases.
- Preventable conditions contribute significantly to the overall disease burden in the elderly.
- Postponing or preventing disease onset in seniors is a critical public health objective.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate if health promotion programs can prevent illness and disability in older adults.
- To assess the potential of these programs to reduce healthcare utilization and Medicare expenditures.
- To test the hypothesis that reducing modifiable health risks in seniors improves health and lowers costs.
Main Methods:
- Review of evidence on health promotion programs for seniors.
- Assessment of program impact on illness, disability, and quality of life.
- Analysis of potential healthcare utilization and cost reductions for Medicare.
Main Results:
- Well-designed health promotion programs demonstrate potential for preventing illness and disability.
- Evidence suggests these programs can reduce healthcare utilization among the elderly.
- Reducing modifiable health risks in seniors is hypothesized to lead to significant Medicare savings.
Conclusions:
- Health promotion programs are a viable strategy for improving senior health and quality of life.
- These programs hold promise for mitigating the financial burden of chronic diseases on Medicare.
- The Senior Risk Reduction Demonstration will further investigate the ROI of private-sector risk reduction programs for Medicare.
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