<0> For SCAN Health PlanRoss Goldberg818-597-8453, x-1 </0>
Nearly one in five seniors who are hospitalized return to the hospital within 30 days, according to a recently released report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. These readmissions are not only often physically and mentally debilitating to the seniors and their families, but contribute greatly to avoidable and unnecessary expenses on our nation’s healthcare system.
In an attempt to help curb these numbers, is offering seniors “Five Tips” to lessen the chance of readmission.
“The cost associated with hospital readmissions in America is $97 billion annually, of which $27 billion are Medicare expenditures,” says Romilla Batra, M.D., vice president and medical director of SCAN. “Yet a February 2013 study published in the found no link between readmissions and improved health outcomes. That tells us that many of these readmissions can and should be avoided if seniors follow five easy steps.”
Dr. Batra says that readmission rates for seniors can also be reduced by enrolling in a health plan that has a strong emphasis on integrated care and care management. She points to a 2012 study released by Avalere Health that compared 30-day all-cause hospital readmission rates between California dual-eligible (Medicare and Medi-Cal) individuals in traditional Medicare vs. those enrolled in SCAN Health Plan. The independent study found that SCAN’s dual-eligible members had a hospital readmission rate that was 25 percent lower than those in fee-for-service.
“Industry-wide efforts are underway to bring down readmission rates including new rules passed as part of the Affordable Care Act that charge additional fees to hospitals with excessive readmissions,” said Dr. Batra. “But ultimately it is still the consumer themselves who can play the biggest role through common sense and following these five easy steps.”
For 35 years SCAN Health Plan has been focusing exclusively on the unique needs of seniors and others on Medicare. The company currently has nearly 145,000 members in California and Arizona. Further information may be obtained at or on Facebook at .
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