By Dave Ranney
KHI News Service
KANSAS CITY, MO., July 9
Federal officials vowed Monday to take a more active role in getting people
especially those on Medicare
to take advantage of preventive health care.
“We can do better,” said Herb Kuhn, acting deputy administer of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid in Washington, D.C.
Kuhn noted that thousands of Kansans fail to take advantage of preventive care
flu shots, for example
that is covered by Medicare.
“Only half the women over age 65 got the mammograms they were eligible for in 2005,” he said.
Kuhn”s comments were part of a morning-long Bi-State Health and Wellness Summit at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
The summit coincided with a Medicare-sponsored promotional bus tour
called “A Healthier US Starts Here”
passing through Kansas City, Mo.
A similar summit and bus stop are planned for 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Friday at Wesley Medical Center in Wichita.
The bus tour began in April and is expected to make stops in 48 states in time for the National Prevention and Health Promotion Summit, Nov. 27-29, in Washington, D.C.
Summit organizers handed out check lists of preventive services covered by Medicare: flu shots, pneumonia shots, cholesterol screenings, diabetes screenings, nutritional therapy, bone mass measurement, glaucoma tests, mammograms, prostate screenings, pap tests, pelvic exams and more.
The tour also encourages people to lead healthier lifestyles by avoiding tobacco, exercising regularly and eating well.
Kuhn, who grew up in Emporia, warned that Medicare cannot keep pace with the ever-rising costs of treating chronic diseases.
“Ninety million Americans are living with a chronic disease,” he said.
Many of these diseases
heart disease, lung disease, cancer, diabetes
are considered preventable.
Diabetes” toll on public health is “huge,” Kuhn said, noting the nation already spends $132 billion a year on diabetes-related care.
“One out of every ten health care dollars spent in this country is spent on diabetes,” he said.
That”s not surprising, said Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Roderick Bremby, since much of the nation”s health care system is geared toward treatment rather than prevention.
“We spend more dollars on treating diabetes than we do on educating people on how not to be affected by the ravages of diabetes,” Bremby said. “Why is it that we pay for amputations, but we don”t pay for counseling?”
Several summit participants suggested changes in federal laws and policies:
*
Dr. Howard Rodenberg, director of KDHE”s Division of Health, said the federal government
should ban smoking in public areas since harmful effects of second-hand smoke are no longer in dispute.
*
Dr. Rex Archer, Director of Health for Kansas City, Mo., and a past president of the National Association of County and City Health Officials, said Medicare should earmark at least 1 percent of its budget for preventive services aimed at people who are not yet 65.
*
Kansas City businessman Landon Rowland said prices charged by drug companies in and outside the United States should be made public and readily available. Rowland said U.S. businesses and their insurers” prescription drug costs should not be higher than those in other countries.
Federal officials welcomed the suggestions but did not respond to them directly.
-Dave Ranney is a staff writer for KHI News Service, which specializes in coverage of health issues facing Kansans. He can be reached at
dranney@khi.org
or at 785-233-5443, ext. 128.