In a healthcare supply store today I saw an elderly man deprived of a needed oxygen tank.

[madfloridian]

36. Survey doesn't include ones who were refused service or couldn't afford copay.

Last edited Tue May 14, 2013, 10:19 PM - Edit history (2)

During this time, during these years leading up to 2017 when the Obama administration's proposed $100 copay for each home health care visit will kick in....many will be like this man yesterday. Just not receiving services.

From the article....they did not include those who were refused service or could not afford the copay.

http://hamptonroads.com/2013/05/medicare-costs-way-down-companies-worry

Federal health officials say it saved more than $200 million in its first year. They reported high levels of satisfaction from beneficiaries and no increases in hospitalizations, emergency room visits or other undesirable outcomes in the areas served by the program, according to a report last year from the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

The number of people receiving some types of equipment declined. Medicare leaders said that could be because the new system routed out potential fraud or because the new system affected claims-processing timelines.

The Government Accountability Office called the results incomplete, though, noting that the measures didn’t show whether patients received needed equipment on time or whether their health suffered if they didn’t.

More about the home health care copay....many will not be able to afford it.

http://homehealthcarenews.com/2013/05/home-care-advocates-ready-to-fight-co-pays-again/

The Obama Administration’s FY 2014 budget proposes a co-payment of $100 per home health episode for new Medicare beneficiaries, applying to episodes with five or more visits not preceded by a hospital or other inpatient post-acute stay.

While the proposal would not kick in for new Medicare enrollees until 2017 if implemented, home health professionals are already wary the law would drive patients to costlier care settings.

For seniors living on limited or fixed incomes, co-pays for home health services could cause them to forego care, says Kyle Simon, government affairs director of the Home Care Association of Florida.

“In extreme cases, beneficiaries with chronic conditions could opt to move into more expensive institutions like nursing homes, further stressing state Medicaid budgets,” says Simon.