May 31, 2005
If an early test run is any indication, two out of five Medicare recipients eligible for extra help with their prescription drug costs next year will apply for that help.
Federal officials say they hope to improve on the 40 percent return rate when the applications go out nationwide during the next 12 weeks.
Advocates for the elderly were more wary. They said the success rate would have been much lower if the government had not intervened with telephone calls.
By Kevin Freking
Associated Press
May 28, 2005
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Prescription Drugs | 
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Posted by lifedoneright
May 31, 2005
Older adults who smoke are twice as likely to suffer from a degenerative eye disorder that is the leading cause of blindness in the elderly as their non-smoking peers, according to findings from the largest study to look at this association in a British population.
Reuters Health
May 30, 2005
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Health Conditions | 
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Posted by lifedoneright
May 31, 2005
Prince George’s fire officials reached out to the country’s most vulnerable residents Saturday, one day after fire killed an elderly couple in Chapel Oaks, Md.
County fire officials ask that people with disabilities register with the county’s Project ID program, so emergency workers will know what to look for in the event of a crisis.
The number for Project ID is (301) 883-7719.
nbc4.com
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Healthy Living | 
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Posted by lifedoneright
May 31, 2005
SIMpill – Medication Dispenser
A pill bottle which, when opened, delivers an SMS text message to a central server. The SMS contains a unique pill box ID number as well as some information about the battery status of the pill box. Each SMS is time stamped.
The central server receives the incoming SMS and, if it is within the time tolerances set for the pill box sending the message is simply stored for statistical purposes.
Should no message be received within the time tolerances then the server can be set to produce a number of responses (e.g. sending a text message reminder to the patient’s handset, sending a text message prompt to a family member or community based care giver, prompting them to visit the patient to ascertain the cause of non-compliance and provide assistance, sending a text message to a clinic based health professional or any other user determined response), or indeed escalate through these responses as time elapses with no incoming message in response to the previous outgoing message.
Data on levels of compliance as measured by the device are stored for future analysis and use.
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Posted by lifedoneright
May 30, 2005
Companies seek partners for Bluetooth-enabled panic alarm
Design consultancy Fen Technology Ltd.(Cambridge, England) has teamed with Securecom Technologies Ltd. to develop a Bluetooth-enabled panic alarm that can work with a Bluetooth-based GSM phone or a satellite phone.
The so-called Wireless Personal Alarm is a button-size Bluetooth pendant that enables the user to send an alarm, with embedded location information to preselected recipients, while the user’s GSM or satellite mobile handset is beyond their immediate reach. For GSM, the latest network-based location technology is used; for satellite handsets, embedded Global Positioning System (GPS) technology is utilized.
Read more…
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Posted by lifedoneright
May 30, 2005
If you want consistent prescription drug prices, maybe you should invite more senior citizens to move to town.
When pharmacies have many senior citizens as customers, they appear to price prescription drugs more competitively, says Adrienne Ohler, who received a master’s degree in economics from Montana State University this spring.
Medical News Today
May 29, 2005
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Posted by lifedoneright
May 30, 2005
Good times seem like they should bring good health. More people have jobs and health insurance when an economy is growing. Fewer people skip visits to the doctor to save money or suffer the severe stress that comes with a layoff. So with job growth now stronger than it has been since 2000, the country can look forward to some vigorous years, it might seem.
By DAVID LEONHARDT
New York Times
Published: May 30, 2005
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Posted by lifedoneright
