SIGforum
Medicare wellness check
August 26, 2019, 08:29 AM
V-TailMedicare wellness check
I am a bit confused by some of the above posts. Some of them indicate a physical presence for these wellness checks, some indicate a telephone question and answer session, unless I misunderstand.
With my hearing impairment I rarely try to answer telephone calls, and never from a number that I do not recognize, but even if I were able to answer the telephone normally, I would tell a caller like this that I do not answer any personal questions on the telephone. If you want information from me, and if you are a legitimate Medicare representative, you have my mailing address. Have a nice day.
הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים August 26, 2019, 03:09 PM
matthew03quote:
Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Medicare offers a free "wellness check" once per year. Yesterday, we got a call from our clinic wanting to schedule the check. I've been on Medicare for 7 years and never got this call before. I got the check once, a few years back, and all they did was take your BP, temp, weight and talk a bit. Nothing more than what they do when you visit your physician normally
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
It is about the money and government control in healthcare. Often the physician works for a hospital. The hospital is paid extra money to perform these wellness checks. CMS, the agency that runs Medicare decides these sorts of things. The latest is payment for an "Alcohol misuse screening." A bureaucrat comes up with these sorts of things, not your physician.
Insurance agent here, this is correct. I am being pushed to ask questions of my customers from a form, yes answers gets my company more compensation from .gov.
August 26, 2019, 03:43 PM
fiasconvaI get the check once a year. It's not that invasive and no prostate check but they do want an EKG, which I usually decline. But that check is good for some people. My stepdad was starting to decline mentally and one of the ways they diagnosed it was he couldn't draw the 11:15 on the clock like they asked him to.
"Even if the world were perfect it wouldn't be." ... Yogi Berra August 26, 2019, 05:31 PM
ZSMICHAELquote:
My stepdad was starting to decline mentally and one of the ways they diagnosed it was he couldn't draw the 11:15 on the clock like they asked him to.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
These cognitive tests are beyond primitive. Most millenials cannot tell time on an analog clock.
August 26, 2019, 07:10 PM
V-Tailquote:
Most millenials cannot tell time on an analog clock.
Hey Siri -- what time is it?
הרחפת שלי מלאה בצלופחים August 28, 2019, 12:08 AM
zoom6zoom"why yes, I have a bar in my shower. But I'm really low on bourbon, and the ice keeps melting"
I have my own style of humor. I call it Snarkasm. August 28, 2019, 07:41 AM
Pipe Smokerquote:
Originally posted by V-Tail:
I am a bit confused by some of the above posts. Some of them indicate a physical presence for these wellness checks, some indicate a telephone question and answer session, unless I misunderstand.
<snip>
I’m surprised by that too. Medicare is bureaucratic to the max. I’d supposed that the annual wellness check had fully defined procedures.
Serious about crackers August 28, 2019, 09:30 AM
mcrimmMy wife and I had our first wellness check yesterday after being on Medicare for 4+ years. The Nurse Practitioner did height, weight, BP, checked heart, lungs, reflexes and asked a few questions. We had blood work done earlier so she went over that report. Pretty simple and non-evasive. I didn't know what to expect.
Mike
I'm sorry if I hurt you feelings when I called you stupid - I thought you already knew - Unknown
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When you have no future, you live in the past. " Sycamore Row" by John Grisham August 28, 2019, 11:24 AM
rburgI had my mandatory annual physical on Friday. I had a crudely typed group of questions to fill out. My wife was along so I couldn't be an asshole. I do remember a question about a bar in my shower. Another if I've fallen in the last 2 years. Hell, I'm old and fall all the time. I thought it was expected. No gun questions.
Unhappy ammo seeker
August 28, 2019, 11:39 AM
Jim ShugartA bar in the shower is a very good idea, IMHO.
When a thing is funny, search it carefully for a hidden truth. - George Bernard Shaw
August 28, 2019, 01:08 PM
Sigmundquote:
Originally posted by 229DAK:
I start Medicare October 1st. Apparently you must be on Medicare for a full year before you can have the wellness check.
It may not be a full year. After being on TriCare since Nov 2010, I went on Medicare in Nov 2015 I think it was the following summer they added the wellness check to my annual physical. So every summer I schedule a physical after which the doc says "Keep up whatever you're doing, you're in darn good shape for 68."
Part of this is my filling out a form with questions about handrails, etc, questions for REAL old people.
At the risk of being cynical, I think many medical offices like it when patients turn 65 and join Medicare, it becomes primary payer and a reliable source of income.
August 28, 2019, 02:20 PM
just1tymquote:
Originally posted by Jim Shugart:
A bar in the shower is a very good idea, IMHO.
...Now thats funny!
OP, I have had a Medicare advantage plan now for a few years and I've actually had to call a complain to get them to stop calling me about them doing home health visits which is a bit different, they finally stopped though...or at least so far. When I started with Medicare, even after a few years I don't recall being contacted at all for a wellness check.
Regards, Will G.
August 28, 2019, 03:39 PM
Fed161Imagine if Medicare for all ever passes. It would be awful. In addition, it would result in fewer doctors and hospitals would close. Doctors generally are compensated 20% less for Medicare patients than private pay and private insurance patients. Bernie's Medicare for all doesn't change the reimbursement rates. So what's going to happen 10 years after Medicare for all and doctors income has been cut by 20%. Will we have more doctors, or fewer doctors. I think we all know the answer to that.
August 28, 2019, 07:42 PM
henryazquote:
Originally posted by 229DAK:
I start Medicare October 1st. Apparently you must be on Medicare for a full year before you can have the wellness check.
Yes, one year for the annual wellness checks. But, they do offer an introductory wellness check when you first get on Medicare. I think it is slightly less comprehensive.
When in doubt, mumble August 28, 2019, 10:49 PM
ZSMICHAELquote:
Doctors generally are compensated 20% less for Medicare patients than private pay and private insurance patients.
It is more like 50 percent less and lots more red tape and hassle. Medicaid is even less. Many specialists limit the number of Medicare patients. If you do not participate in their Quality Assurance Programs you are penalized a certain percentage of your fee. It is just not worth it.
August 29, 2019, 11:56 AM
220-9erquote:
Originally posted by henryaz:
quote:
Originally posted by 229DAK:
I start Medicare October 1st. Apparently you must be on Medicare for a full year before you can have the wellness check.
Yes, one year for the annual wellness checks. But, they do offer an introductory wellness check when you first get on Medicare. I think it is slightly less comprehensive.
I had my "welcome to Medicare check" last year and they said it was more comprehensive than the follow up each year. They want to get some reference data.
They don't actually call it a physical or do a lot of tests without specific complaints so you need to ask and complain about things you want checked or they do the minimum.
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Avoid buying ChiCom/CCP products whenever possible.
August 29, 2019, 12:23 PM
Fed161quote:
Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
quote:
Doctors generally are compensated 20% less for Medicare patients than private pay and private insurance patients.
It is more like 50 percent less and lots more red tape and hassle. Medicaid is even less. Many specialists limit the number of Medicare patients. If you do not participate in their Quality Assurance Programs you are penalized a certain percentage of your fee. It is just not worth it.
It depends on the procedure but you are correct that in many cases it's a lot more than 20%. Medicare for all sounds so good to people who don't have the facts and have no idea what the consequences would be. It would be one of the biggest disasters ever to hit the country. A thousand times worse than all of the problems with Obamacare. It would over time literally cause people to die due to lack of doctors etc. Hospitals would close as well.
August 29, 2019, 03:45 PM
greekfedI’ve often wondered why Medicare doesn’t offer a real annual physical instead of this joke?
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There is no distinctly native American criminal class... save Congress. - Mark Twain
August 29, 2019, 08:55 PM
220-9erquote:
Originally posted by greekfed:
I’ve often wondered why Medicare doesn’t offer a real annual physical instead of this joke?
I had the same question. They say having a good physical is the most cost effective way so any issues will be caught earlier when most treatable and cost less to treat.
Then they won’t let you get one unless you have a specific problem.
I guess that’s what you get when you let the government design your health care.
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Avoid buying ChiCom/CCP products whenever possible.
August 29, 2019, 09:18 PM
ZSMICHAELquote:
I guess that’s what you get when you let the government design your health care.
^^^^^^^^^^^
Yep. Now they want to have docs submit more prior authorizations for tests. The metrics used by CMS to evaluate care are pretty useless, kind of like the current mantra, "evidence based care."