Doctors Make House Calls

Posted by Kathy Quan Sep 25, 2006

I remember as a child the doctor came to the house at night when I developed an ear infection. He came quite often whenever one of my family was ill, but that was many years ago.

Today, house calls by physicians are being revisited by Medicare in a three-year demonstration program. Select Medicare beneficiaries in California, Texas, and Florida are participating in this program to explore the possible cost savings as well as health benefits.

In its first year, the program has already proven to reduce costs by 40%. The 3-5% of the total population of Medicare beneficiaries with debilitating chronic illness accounts for 50% of the expenditures. This reduction can provide significant savings to Medicare.

In October 2005, approximately 15,000 people to paticipate. Recently 13,600 more were added to the program which is being expanded to Arizona and New Jersey.

Participants in the program must meet qualifying criteria. Mobility issues and difficulty getting to a physician's office without the use of non-emergency medical transportation is a primary criteria. Chronic illness is another.

The program is being run by Care Level Management under contract to Medicare. For more information visit their website. Or read the recent article in The Modesto Bee.