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Medicare Doesn't Give Elderly Adequate
Mental-Health Care Linda
Powell
May 23, 2003 May 25-31 has
been designated Older Americans' Mental Health Week. Mental-health and
aging advocates will use this time to educate the public about the needs
of older adults with mental illness. Unfortunately,
older adults have the highest suicide rate of any age group in this
country. While older adults account for 13 percent of the population in
the U.S., individuals age 65 and older account for almost 20 percent of
all suicide deaths. This is a statistic that must change. The wealth of
knowledge and experience in this group is vital to the continued
advancement of future generations. Although statistics indicate that 20
percent of older Americans have a diagnosable mental illness, it appears
only about one in four actually seeks treatment. One of the
barriers to care is the discrimination that exists within the current
Medicare system. While Medicare pays 80 percent of the doctor's fee for
treatment of a "physical" illness, it pays only 50 percent of
the fee for mental-health care. Many older adults live on such a tight
budget that they cannot spare the extra co-payment. The Medicare
Mental Health Modernization Act of 2003 is currently in Congress and would
end this discriminatory practice. Passage of this legislation would
greatly improve the quality of life for millions of older Americans. Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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