Fwd: Medicare Therapy Caps Sneak Up on Seniors

[Guest guest]

Medicare has made life more and more difficult for all concerned. Fram the

providers' end - they last year lowered the already low fees that they pay

providers; simultaneously they made more and more " mistakes " to avoid or

delay payments. This also, of course, greatly increases paper work time for

providers. As a result I recently dropped out as a Medicare provider, after

providing services under their auspices for 10 years or so.

 

The situation really is of concern. Many doctors locally have dropped out of

Medicare or plan to do so. We all need to keep after our politicians about

this one!

 

And by the way, Medicare made it as complicated to opt out as to deal with

them on an ongoing basis. My husband (an attorney) and I ended up having to

hire an attorney in order to complete the opt-out process, due to the

inconsistencies and lack of clarity in Medicare's directives of how to do so.

 

Regards,

 

Karen Milstein, PhD

[Guest guest]

Karen......I read, with great interest, your comments regarding Medicare. I

have been wondering about all that since my 98 year old grandmother passed

last month and having to deal with all the bills, etc. What do they cover

and what don't they and no one seems to have an answer??? It is truly a

shame when a provider has to 'drop-out' or 'opt-out' and has trouble doing

either or staying in and the never ending battle of attempting to collect.

The system is definitely messed up. Once again, I wanted to share with other

group members of 'searching alternatives' what I do and that is to assist

others in getting affordable, accountable and accessible access to the legal

system thru a membershjp for your entire family with top-rated attorneys for

less than a cup of coffee per day. Luckily, in your situation, your husband

is an attorney, so that certainly helped. I don't know if he practiced in

that area of law, but just the fact that you had access was important. I

wonder if you would have sought that out legally if he wasn't an attorney???

Simply from the financial standpoint, that stops most of us from getting

treated fairly or finding out if we have the right to something, having a

contract reviewed before we sign it, having a letter written on our behalf to

resolve a situation, etc. This membership gives you immediate access to an

expert in every area of law, either local or toll-free and includes a

comprehensive will as well.

 

I am as passionate about what I can assist others with as all of you are with

the alternative medicine you practice (by the way, I thoroughly enjoyed your

article 'Creating Peace in Your Life'). Take a look at my website--address

below---or contact me via email if you have interest.

 

Val Romero

Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

(505)881-8546 Office

(505)450-8546 Cell

Visit my website!

www.prepaidlegal.com/go/valromero

Making the idea of 'Equal Justice for All' a reality for all Americans.

 

 

 

 

This is an unsolicited commercial E-mail message.

 

If you would like to be removed from my future mailings about the product or

opportunity of Prepaid Legal Services, Inc., and subsidiaries, please reply

and type " remove " in the subject line.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Comments?

 

Misty

 

http://www..com

 

 

 

Medicare Therapy Caps Sneak Up on Seniors

 

http://consumeraffairs.com/news03/med_cap.html

 

 

Medicare beneficiaries face new caps on payments for physical, speech and

occupational therapies. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid

Services (CMS), Medicare will implement a $1,590 annual limit on physical and

speech therapy, and a separate $1,590 annual limit for occupational therapy,

effective July 1.

 

The new caps would affect up to 13 percent of all seniors.

 

Seniors groups are balatedly protesting the change, which slipped under the

political radar as attention was focused on the fight in Congress over a

Medicare prescription drug benefit. CMS hasn't notified beneficiaries about the

limits and possibly might contact in advance only those who already are therapy

patients.

 

" The Alliance for Retired Americans is outraged that CMS would seek to

drastically limit important rehabilitative services required to keep seniors

healthy and improve the quality of their lives, " says George J. Koupias,

President, who pledged that " the Alliance and its allies will fight to rescind

these caps. "

 

The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare sees the

rehabilitative therapy cap as being " detrimental to seniors, and we're working

hard to repeal it, " said Sharon Brigner, the senior health policy analyst for

the Washington-based lobbying group. " Seniors are not going to have access to

important services that will keep them living healthy and in their communities. "

 

Although the effect is being felt only now, the cap actually was passed under

the 1997 Balanced Budget Act. It reflected efforts by Congress and

then-President Bill Clinton to slow runaway home health care and ancillary

service costs being billed to Medicare.

 

In 1999, Congress passed a moratorium that kept the rehabilitative therapy cap

from being activated, then gave that moratorium a two-year extension in 2000.

But this year, lawmakers so far have taken no action, although there is

legislation in the House and Senate to eliminate therapy caps.

 

The cap doesn't apply to therapies received in hospital outpatient centers. But

there are fewer of those than stand-alone centers, which could mean that

patients would have to wait to be seen. Some nursing home residents might have

to be sent to a hospital for the treatments they now get from therapists at the

home if they want Medicare to pay for it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The New Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo.

 

 

[Guest guest]

Sorry, Val - I, too, can err, esp. when rushing - my husband is a physician

(psychiatrist), not an attorney - and we both needed help to opt out of

Medicare.

 

Thanks for informing everyone about your services.

 

Karen

[Guest guest]

Oops! Just a tiny little error.....ha! So, that probably stung the

pocketbook a bit....please pass on the information. We all know people who

have challenges that it would never occur to them to call an attorney about

because it is too expensive. This service lets them 'level the playing field

' and be empowered to get even the smallest thing handled. Each state has a

top-rated provider law firm that services the members of that state---in

large states like California and Texas, those firms get over a million

dollars per month retainer (yes, I meant a month!) to assist those members.

It is a paradigm shift in the way Americans can now get equal access to the

justice system. I love to share that concept with others!

 

Val Romero

Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

(505)881-8546 Office

(505)450-8546 Cell

Visit my website!

www.prepaidlegal.com/go/valromero

Making the idea of 'Equal Justice for All' a reality for all Americans.

 

 

 

 

This is an unsolicited commercial E-mail message.

 

If you would like to be removed from my future mailings about the product or

opportunity of Prepaid Legal Services, Inc., and subsidiaries, please reply

and type " remove " in the subject line.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Dear Val-

 

Since we have spoken in private, I must apologize if I mislead

you... You are more than welcomed to put your pre-paid legal

information underneath your name, and perhaps even one or two

sentences... Please understand I am having so many messages of

people advertising their products and services. It would have been

different if someone were directly asking for help with law issues,

(like I did just a few months ago.) Please also understand if I

allow you to do it, then I have to allow everyone, and since I have

already made so many posts to the affect of how to offer and seek

help here, and have called so many people on this exact issue, it

would be unfair.

 

Be Well, Misty

http://www..com

 

, vromeroatppl@a...

wrote:

> Oops! Just a tiny little error.....ha! So, that probably stung

the

> pocketbook a bit....please pass on the information. We all know

people who

> have challenges that it would never occur to them to call an

attorney

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Everyone could just change the name from Medicare to just about any one

of the so called agencies of the U.S. and the message would be the same.

 

Until we all unite under one cause we will continue to have problems one

on everyone that works for these agencies, which by the way we pay for

their salaries one way or another. Even if we hire an attorney to go up

against any of these agencies of the U.S., we still will lose in the long

haul.

 

,

Steven Pattison

(913) 491-0320 - 9 to 5 CDT

 

 

On Mon, 21 Apr 2003 11:20:39 EDT MidbarNM writes:

Medicare has made life more and more difficult for all concerned. Fram

the

providers' end - they last year lowered the already low fees that they

pay

providers; simultaneously they made more and more " mistakes " to avoid or

delay payments. This also, of course, greatly increases paper work time

for

providers. As a result I recently dropped out as a Medicare provider,

after

providing services under their auspices for 10 years or so.

 

The situation really is of concern. Many doctors locally have dropped out

of

Medicare or plan to do so. We all need to keep after our politicians

about

this one!

 

And by the way, Medicare made it as complicated to opt out as to deal

with

them on an ongoing basis. My husband (an attorney) and I ended up having

to

hire an attorney in order to complete the opt-out process, due to the

inconsistencies and lack of clarity in Medicare's directives of how to do

so.

 

Regards,

 

Karen Milstein, PhD