Data

The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) and the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) have released an updated data book which presents information on the demographic and other personal characteristics, expenditures, and health care utilization of individuals who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid coverage.

In 2017, Reading Hospital was awarded a $4.5 million grant from CMS to implement the Accountable Health Communities (AHC) model and assess whether addressing the health-related social needs of local Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries would impact their healthcare costs and inpatient and outpatient healthcare utilization. This case study looks at 747 patients with resolved food needs and finds that among this cohort, emergency department visits dropped 32%, hospital admissions decreased 32%, readmissions were reduced by 30%, and hospital costs went down 31%. Among the patients who were also on the Diabetes Registry, A1C rates decreased by an average of 2.2%

The Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) released the 2022 edition of the MACStats: Medicaid and CHIP Data Book, with updated data on national and state Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollment, spending, benefits, and beneficiaries’ health, service use, and access to care. As of July 2022, almost 90 million people were enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP.

Since the early ninties the Eldercare Locator has connected older adults, caregivers, families, and professionals to local services that support healthy aging at home. This new infographic illustrates the top needs of individuals who contacted the Eldercare Locator in 2021. Requests were mostly related to transportation (22%), in-home services (12%) and housing (11%).

This new KFF brief finds that only 45% of all nursing facility residents and 22% of staff are up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations. That is a sharp drop from the 87 percent of nursing facility residents and staff who completed their primary vaccination series. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently defines having up to date vaccines as “having received a bivalent booster or having received a final shot of the original vaccines less than two months ago.” The share of residents who are up to date ranged from 73 percent in South Dakota to 24 percent in Arizona. Among nursing home staff, the share ranged from 48 percent in California to 10 percent in Alabama.

This new KFF brief finds that only 45% of all nursing facility residents and 22% of staff are up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations. That is a sharp drop from the 87 percent of nursing facility residents and staff who completed their primary vaccination series. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently defines having up to date vaccines as “having received a bivalent booster or having received a final shot of the original vaccines less than two months ago.” The share of residents who are up to date ranged from 73 percent in South Dakota to 24 percent in Arizona. Among nursing home staff, the share ranged from 48 percent in California to 10 percent in Alabama.

This Kaiser Family Foundation analysis found that 656,000 people nationwide were on state waiting lists for home and community-based services financed through Medicaid waivers in 2021. This new data is among the latest set of findings from the 20th KFF survey of state officials administering Medicaid HCBS programs in all 50 states and Washington, DC.

The Profile of Older Americans is an annual summary of the statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, the National Center for Health Statistics, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics related to older adults in the United States. The Profile illustrates the shifting demographics of Americans age 65 and older and includes information on population growth, marital status, living arrangements, income, employment, and health. This year's report includes a special section on family caregivers.

Findings from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging demonstrate the importance of providing support to caregivers. More than half of people age 50 to 80 say they helped at least one person over 65 with their health or personal care needs, meals, finances, or home maintenance/improvement in the past two years, according to new findings. While nearly all helpers (96%) reported positive aspects of supporting others, a quarter said it was more difficult than they expected, especially for those helping with more care tasks or helping someone with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease/other dementia.

A new Poll Extra from the National Poll on Healthy Aging takes a look at the impact of rising food costs on older adults, their overall diet, and food security. In all, three-quarters of people age 50–80 in the United States say the rising cost of groceries has affected them somewhat or a lot, and nearly a third of older adults say they are eating less healthily as a result.