The 2nd HPD report - Health Policy Monitor

Sources and further reading:
Department of Health. National Service Framework for
Older People. London: Department of Health, 2001.
Royal Commission on Long Term Care for the Elderly.
With Respect to Old Age. London: The Stationery Office,
1998.
Wittenberg, Raphael, et al. Demand for Long-Term Care in the
UK: Projections of Long Term Care Finance for Older People
until 2051. London: Institute for Public Policy Research,
2001.
Wittenberg, Raphael, et al. “Funding Long-Term Care: The
Public and Private Options.” In: Mossialos Elias et al.
Funding Health Care: Options for Europe. Buckingham:
Open University Press, 2002, 226–249.
USA: Expansion of prescription drug coverage for the elderly
In November 2003, Congress passed the Medicare Modernization
Act, the largest single change in Medicare since its creation
in 1965.
Medicare, the federal program providing universal health care
coverage for people aged 65 years or older, has not previously
covered outpatient prescription drugs. The new law’s main objective
is the expansion of Medicare to provide drug coverage to the
40 million elderly in the United States. The age group 65 and
older accounts for 14 percent of the population and for one third
of drug expenditure.
Nearly 25 percent of the elderly have no drug coverage; 75
percent have at least some kind of assistance, though the extent of
coverage varies broadly. In 2001, out-of-pocket spending for prescription
drugs among Medicare beneficiaries was estimated to
average €666 annually, with 27 percent paying more than €783.
From 2006 on, the elderly will have several options for drug
coverage. These include employer-sponsored retiree plans, a
stand-alone prescription drug plan and comprehensive plans that
integrate enhanced Medicare Part A and B benefits for hospital
and outpatient service.
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Public Visibility
Impact
Transferability
25 percent of the
elderly without
any drug coverage