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News, opinions and meeting coverage in geriatrics.

Medicare to Pay for More FDG-PET Scans

WASHINGTON -- Up to three scans using 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-enhanced positron emission tomography technology can be covered by Medicare for oncology treatment planning, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said.

Close-Up: When Hospice Patients Live Too Long

Across the country, Medicare is cracking down on the hospice industry's growing habit of embracing those whose deaths aren't imminent.

OIG: Avastin a Better Buy for Wet AMD

茂禄驴WASHINGTON -- The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should establish a national payment policy for bevacizumab (Avastin) to treat wet age-related macular degeneration, a government report concluded.

AMA: House of Delegates Backs Individual Mandate

CHICAGO -- The American Medical Association's House of Delegates has reaffirmed its support of individual responsibility -- including a requirement that most U.S. residents buy health insurance -- as the foundation of universal coverage.

Medicare Paid Millions for Viagra

WASHINGTON -- Despite a rule that bars Medicare reimbursement for erectile dysfunction treatment, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) paid out $3.1 million for the drugs in 2007 and 2008, a new government report found.

Not Enough Evidence to Use BMP Off-Label, Panel Says

BALTIMORE -- A Medicare advisory committee has voted that there is not enough evidence to warrant off-label use of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein, or BMP, for bone surgery.

Medicare Finalizes Denial of Virtual Colonoscopy Coverage

BALTIMORE -- CT colonography for colorectal cancer screening will not be covered under Medicare, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has confirmed.

Medicare to Cover More PET Scans for Cancer Diagnosis

BALTIMORE -- The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced expanded coverage of PET scans for Medicare patients suspected of having most cancers.

Nursing Homes Called 'Dumping Grounds' for Mentally Ill

BALTIMORE -- Young and middle-aged people with serious mental illnesses are increasingly being housed in nursing homes alongside elderly residents, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data show.

Is Cash-Only Medicine the Next Big Thing?

As increasing numbers of physicians work longer and harder to maintain income levels in the face of declining third-party reimbursements, some have opted out -- they're running cash-only practices, and respondents to a 番茄社区 online spotcheck think more doctors will join them.

Medicare Will Pay for tPA in Stroke Thrombolysis

WASHINGTON-Medicare is about to announce that beginning in October it will start paying hospitals for use of the thrombolytic drug tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) for treatment of ischemic stroke, according to published reports.