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USPSTF lung cancer screening recommendations in high-risk Medicare beneficiaries is cost effective
Questions regarding effectiveness, infrastructure and cost effectiveness of low-dose computed tomography (CT) screening of those at high risk for lung cancer have now been answered. Medicare should rapidly provide full national coverage for these exams. An actuarial cost-benefit analysis by Milliman, Inc., published…
Medicare is here to stay
Medicare went into effect 48 years ago on July 1, 1966. Earlier that same year, Medicare workers went door to door trying to get seniors to sign up. Medicare was not the cornerstone then that it is today and people…
How Am I Supposed to Live on Social Security?
Social Security was never intended to be the American worker’s sole retirement plan. Rather, it was designed to keep Americans affected by disability, death of a breadwinner, or old age from starving. Here’s how the father of Social Security, President…
Commentary: Time to hold private Medicare Advantage plans accountable
In 2004, only about 5.3 million Medicare enrollees participated in a Medicare Advantage plan. Now, that number has nearly tripled to 15.7 million. Payments to Medicare Advantage plans account for nearly a third of total Medicare spending today. These plans…
What Do I Do If I Lost My Social Security Card?
Replacing a lost Social Security card is very easy. It also doesn’t cost anything because it’s free. You are actually allowed three card replacements in a year and ten replacements within your lifetime. The process is also quite straightforward. First,…
The Secret To Saving For Retirement When You Have Nothing Saved At All
No retirement savings? Join the crowd. A recent survey by BankRate.com found that 26% of those ages 50 to 65 have nothing at all saved for retirement. But even in your 50s, it’s not too late to catch up or at least…
Physicians’ Medicare payment data put costly eye treatments under the microscope
Spritzing perfume is how Judy Johnson realized her eyesight had gone bad. At one point, diabetes had worsened her vision so much that the 69-year-old Lansing, Kan., resident had to squirt out a puff of her favorite scent just to find…
If Your Child is Disabled, Social Security Can Help
Cancer is a terrible disease that, although sometimes beatable, can strike a blow to anyone unfortunate enough to face it. It is especially difficult to see children struck by cancer. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, designated to bring attention…
Medicare changes threaten ALS patients’ speech devices
Before the nation found itself awash in ice-bucket challenges, surveys showed that just half of the public knew about ALS, advocates say. Families living with the terrible disease are touched by the surprising surge of awareness and donations. “Ben cries…
Triangle seniors find plentiful fitness options – at the right price
When Julia Daniels and her husband, Bob Trullinger, were researching where to move after they left their teaching jobs in New York, they knew they wanted a place where they could retire and retire well. For Daniels and Trullinger, both…