Medicare Expands Benefits

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Medicare Expands Benefits

Recently Medicare began coverage for several new preventive services including nutrition therapy. Medicare now pays for registered dietitians to help treat seniors with diabetes or kidney disease, helping you choose the kinds of foods that can control or treat your illnesses. To get nutrition therapy, you must have a referral from your treating physician.

It is now also easier to find treatment for chronic pain. New Medicare reimbursement rules will allow doctors to provide such treatment to patients with cancer, arthritis, sickle cell anemia, and other diseases that cause severe pain.

In addition, there is new coverage for an annual Glaucoma detection eye exam for "high risk" patients. Although Medicare still does not cover routine eye exams, "high risk" is defined as beneficiaries with diabetes, a family history of glaucoma and African Americans age 50 and older. Glaucoma is five times more likely to occur in African Americans than whites and four times more likely to cause blindness. Ask your doctor about these valuable new benefits.

Sources: "Nutrition Therapy to Fall Under Medicare Umbrella," Robert Pear, The New York Times, January 1, 2002. "Medicare Now Covers Glaucoma Detection Eye Exam," Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, January 22, 2002.

March 2002