Globe Syndicate
For release Friday June 02, 2006
The
by Carol Abaya, M.A.
MEDICAID CAN STOP MEDICAL
TREATMENT
Question: My father, 90,
was in the hospital and had a feeding tube and oxygen. He was on Medicaid. After a month, Medicaid refused to pay the
hospital, and the hospital removed the tube and oxygen. My father died. I’m mad.
What should I do?
Answer: Stop being mad
and accept the fact your father lived a long time.
Medicaid
only stops paying if the treatment is “futile.”
This means that the patient will not get any better. If the situation is futile and Medicaid stops
paying, hospitals in many states can - and do - stop treatment. The cost of a feeding tube and hydration is
$100,000 a year. That’s a lot of money
to just keep a person “alive” with no quality of life.
My
personal feeling is that keeping a person alive just for the sake of having him
or her “still here” is really abuse.
By
happy your father no longer has to suffer.
Question: My mother, 79,
has been on dialysis for a year. She
says she is tired of being hooked up to a machine every night and not being
able to travel (a real passion). She says she wants to stop the machine and
“travel to the next world.” I’m against
her stopping treatment. My younger flaky
sister says we have to honor Mom’s wishes?
Should we?
Answer: Respect is a key element
in any relationship. Your sister is 100%
correct. You should respect -- and
accept -- your mother’s wish. After all,
it’s her life.
At the
same time, if she has friends with whom she visits or does things with,
encourage her to continue and develop new interests. Otherwise she may just be sitting around
waiting to die. This certainly is not a
good state of mind.
Nursing Home Alert: Nursing homes
are prohibited by federal law (COBRA 1987, 1990 and 1993, specifically) to ask
a patient or his or her family to pay a fee up front just to gain admission to
the nursing home. All Medicare and
Medicaid nursing homes fall under these regulations.
However,
this problem continues to come up.
Remember
that Medicare does NOT pay for long term nursing home care. Medicare pays for all or part of SNF care for
up to 100 days. Under these same OBRA
regulations, the patient DOES NOT have to “show improvement.” The SNF only has to show the care is
“medically necessary.”
Medicare Payment Alert: There are some costly medical testing
procedures which many doctors claim are not covered by Medicare. Some of these procedures involve cancer
detection at an early stage. Actually,
Medicare will pay for such tests, e.g. PET/CT scan, if the test can be shown to
be “medically necessary.” If a doctor
says a procedure is not covered, call Medicare to check it out.
End of Life Information Resources: Compassion and Choices at 800-247-7421; and the National Hospice Organization at 800-658-8898
Are you juggling doing errands for your aging parents, your children, yourself and working at the same time? Are you tired, stressed out and upset that your once vibrant parent is now frail and needy?
Do you feel alone? Rest assured you are not alone! The Sandwich Generation is dedicated to the 50 million Americans who may have elder/parent care concerns and/or responsibilities.
* * *
Do
you have a question? Send it in. Although letters cannot be answered
individually, appropriate letters will be answered in this column whenever
possible. Letters may be edited. Send letters to Ms. Carol Abaya, mail direct
to her at
Carol Abaya is an international-award-winning journalist and creator of the unique magazine The Sandwich Generation: You & Your Aging Parents.
NOTES TO EDITORS: text = 552 words; other material = 160 words
We would appreciate it if you would include the "Globe Syndicate" bug at the end of the column.