March is National Kidney Month and, with one in three Americans at risk for kidney disease, a good time for people to consider the health of this important organ. Kidneys play a vital role in your health by regulating blood pressure, controlling levels of salt and acid in the body, and filtering waste out of the blood. There are multiple factors that can affect a person’s kidney health, including diabetes, high blood pressure, and family history. To reduce the risk of kidney disease, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommends being more active during the day, eating foods with less salt, and baking food instead of frying it. Older adults can also check in with their doctor to monitor their blood pressure and blood-glucose levels, which can also affect kidney health.
Dear Marci,
Dear Marci,
Do I have to pay anything for my Annual Wellness Visit?
– Micah (Richmond, VA)
Dear Micah,
The Annual Wellness Visit is one of the many preventive services that Medicare covers for free. If you have Original Medicare, you will pay no coinsurance or deductible for the Annual Wellness Visit and other preventive care services, as long as you see a health care provider who accepts Medicare assignment. This means that the doctor cannot charge you more than the Medicare-approved amount for services you receive. If you have a Medicare Advantage Plan, you will pay no coinsurance/copayment or deductible for any preventive service that is free for people with Original Medicare, as long as you see an in-network provider.
Charges may apply if you also receive a diagnostic service at the time of your preventive screening. A service is preventive if you have no prior symptoms of the disease, whereas diagnostic services tend to address symptoms or conditions you already have. Doctors may conduct diagnostic tests and procedures if you have a distinct symptom—including a symptom found during the screening—or history of a condition. For example, if a doctor finds and removes a polyp during a preventive care colonoscopy screening, the removal of the polyp is considered diagnostic and costs will likely apply.
As I mentioned, the Annual Wellness Visit is a Medicare-covered preventive screening, and no cost-sharing applies. However, if your provider investigates or treats a symptom during your Annual Wellness Visit, this care is not part of the visit, and you may be responsible for certain costs.
During your Annual Wellness Visit, you will discuss your plan of preventive care for the coming year. This visit is similar to your Welcome to Medicare visit in that it continues to examine your health and update your preventive care plan.
As part of your Annual Wellness Visit, your provider may:
- Update your health-risk assessment
- Update your medical and family history
- Check your weight and blood pressure
- Update your list of current medical providers and suppliers
- Screen for cognitive issues
- Update your screening schedule from previous wellness visits
- Update your list of risk factors and conditions and the care that you are receiving or that is recommended
- Provide health advice and referrals to health education or preventive counseling programs
It is important to understand that while the services listed above are free preventive services, costs may apply if you receive additional services during the Annual Wellness Visit.
The Annual Wellness Visit can be a good time to speak with your doctor and review your health care needs for the coming year. Understanding what is covered with no cost-sharing and when costs may apply can help you make the most of your Medicare-covered preventive services.
There are many other preventive services covered by Medicare at zero cost. You can find a list and description of these services by clicking here.
– Marci
Cardiovascular risk profile linked to profession in older workers !
Among U.S. workers age 45 and older, some jobs appear riskier to cardiovascular health than others. Middle-age and older workers fail to achieve “ideal” ratings for a full slate of cardiovascular risk factors.
Workers age 45 and older in sales, office-support or service occupations appear to have more risk factors for heart disease and stroke than workers in management or professional jobs, according to research presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology/Lifestyle 2016 meeting.
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Vascular disease after age 80 associated with greater risk of dementia !
Increased longevity also increases risk for age-related dementia.
People who reach their 80s without cardiovascular disease are more likely to suffer from the effects ofdementia than a heart attack or stroke, according to a study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. In a small group of participants, an association was also found between zero or low levels of artery-clogging calcium deposits and a low risk of dementia and cardiovascular events, suggesting that the cardiovascular risk factors that lead to coronary heart disease could also affect the brain.
Increasingly successful heart disease prevention and treatment methods have led to longer lifespans, which in turn creates a larger population of older people at risk for dementia. In the United States, dementia mainly affects people over the age of 75.
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New targets for reducing nerve pain identified
A specific molecule involved in maintaining pain after a nerve injury has been identified and blocked in mice by Hiroshima University researchers. These results reveal a promising therapeutic strategy for treating neuropathic pain.
Mice with an injury to their sciatic nerve showed less pain after multiple injections of a drug that blocks the activity of a molecule called high-mobility group box-1 (HMGB1). Researchers also discovered that a single dose of a drug to block the activity of a different molecule, called matrix metalloprotease-9 (MMP-9), could also alleviate pain from the injury.
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