“Poorly controlled diabetes — not diabetes itself — triples dementia risk, study finds,” by Alicia Lasek, McKnight’s LTC News Quote: “The odds of developing full dementia among older adults with cognitive impairment triples when diabetes is poorly controlled — but diabetes itself is not a factor in progression, a new study has found.” LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: An important distinction that underscores the importance of behavioral factors in avoiding dementia.             Subscribe to GoldenCare News  
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“Washington state receives 95,000 exemption applications to new long-term care benefit in first week,” by Alex Regimbal, Seattle PI Quote: “Between Oct. 1 and Oct. 8, the WA Cares Fund received roughly 95,000 exemption submissions, said Nick Demerice, the legislative affairs director for the state Employment Security Department. The first day workers could apply for an exemption was Oct. 1. The benefit is funded by a new payroll tax, which takes effect January 1, 2022. Nearly all Washington employees are subject to the tax, which is 0.58% of a worker’s total wages with no salary cap. That means an employee
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“Nursing Facilities Need to Weather the ‘Reimbursement Storm’ of Medicare Advantage,” by Amy Stulick, Skilled Nursing News   Quote: “With Medicare Advantage revenue “significantly lower” than fee-for-service reimbursement, a new Zimmet Healthcare Services Group analysis says, skilled nursing facilities need to weather today’s “reimbursement storm” in order to make it to the incoming wave of baby boomers that will need facility services.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: Medicaid reimbursement rates were already less than the cost of providing the care. With Medicare Advantage in the mix there is another filter screening out revenue
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“Medicaid’s safety net for pregnant women,” by Bob Herman, Axios   Quote: “Fewer women are uninsured (10.5%) nationally than men (13.4%), due in large part to Medicaid providing pregnancy coverage for low-income women. By the numbers: 16.1% of women are on Medicaid, compared with 12.7% of men, according to census data analyzed by the Kaiser Family Foundation. Yes, but: Large swaths of the South still have restrictive Medicaid coverage or didn’t expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, leaving 1 in 5 women without insurance in states like Oklahoma and Texas. And while Medicaid pays for 43% of all births, that coverage can be short-lived
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