Medicare, Primary Care / 23.07.2024

Navigating the complexities of Medicare can be challenging, especially when it comes to finding and choosing the right primary care doctor. This guide will help you understand the different parts of Medicare, how it covers primary care services, and provide actionable steps to find and evaluate primary care doctors that accept Medicare.

Understanding Medicare and Its Different Parts

Medicare is a federal health insurance program primarily for individuals aged 65 and older, though it also covers certain younger people with disabilities. Medicare consists of four parts:
  1. Medicare Part A: Covers inpatient hospital stays, care in a skilled nursing facility, hospice care, and some home health care.
  2. Medicare Part B: Covers certain doctors' services, outpatient care, medical supplies, and preventive services.
  3. Medicare Part C (Medicare Advantage): An alternative to Original Medicare that offers all Part A and Part B services through private insurance companies. These plans often include additional benefits like vision, dental, and prescription drug coverage.
  4. Medicare Part D: Covers prescription drugs.
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Author Interviews, Heart Disease, JAMA, Primary Care, Stroke, USPSTF / 06.09.2022

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Katrina E. Donahue, M.D., M.P.H. Professor and Vice Chair of Research Chapel Hill Department of Family Medicine University of North Carolina Dr. Donahue joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2020. MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: Heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death in the U.S. The Task Force found that people who are 40 to 75 years old and at high risk for heart disease should take a statin to help protect their health. People in this age group who are at increased risk but not high risk should make an individual decision with their healthcare professional about whether taking a statin is right for them. There is not enough research to determine whether statins are beneficial for people 76 years and older. (more…)
Author Interviews, JAMA, Primary Care, Social Issues / 13.09.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Karina W. Davidson, Ph.D., M.A.Sc. Professor of Behavioral Medicine Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra University/Northwell Health Chairperson, USPSTF MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?  Response: The social and economic conditions in someone’s life, such as whether or not they have secure food, housing, or transportation, can affect their health in multiple ways. As part of our commitment to improving health equity, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force took two key steps. We both thoroughly reviewed the existing research around screening and interventions for social risk factors, and audited our own portfolio of recommendation statements to determine how and how often social risks have been considered in the past. This information serves as a benchmark and foundation for our ongoing work to further advance health equity through our methods and recommendations. (more…)
Author Interviews, Brigham & Women's - Harvard, Electronic Records, JAMA, Pediatrics, Primary Care / 09.07.2021

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Lisa Rotenstein, MD, MBA Assistant Medical Director Population Health and Faculty Wellbeing Department of Medicine Brigham and Women's Hospital MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: Our previous work in JAMA Internal Medicine demonstrated significant differences in time spent on the electronic health record (EHR) by specialty, and specifically showed that primary care clinicians spent significantly more total and after-hours time on the EHR than surgical and medical specialty counterparts. Primary care clinicians spent twice as long as surgical colleagues on notes, and received more than twice as many messages from team-mates, five times as many patient messages, and fifteen times as many prescription messages each day. Given these findings, the heavy administrative burden placed on primary care clinicians, and previous data about burnout among primary care clinicians, we wanted to better understand differences in time spent on the EHR among the different types of primary care clinicians. (more…)