Medicare Is Demonstrating A Focus on Chronic Illness

“The primary care physician has been reduced to such a role in the system that nobody wants to [coordinate care] any more, and those that do quickly find out they can't afford to do that very effectively. So the system needs to strengthen the role of primary care physicians.”

PPAC member Dr. Jeffrey Ross, a Houston physician and podiatrist, asked why CMS wasn't looking more at preventive measures.

Ms. Magno noted that the “Welcome to Medicare” visit that new beneficiaries receive was meant to allow physicians to do a patient risk assessment and discuss preventive measures.