International Council on Active Aging
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Manage costs of healthcare
As a person ages, there is a comparable increase in the risks of disability, dementia, depression and chronic medical conditions (arthritis, diabetes, cardiovascular disease). Today, about 80% of older US adults have at least one chronic condition, and 50% have at least two. Chronic diseases are associated with disability, diminished quality of life, and increased costs for healthcare and long-term care.20
By improving physical and mental function, and contributing to a sense of well-being, wellness programs can help prevent or manage chronic conditions. This lowers the costs for individuals, who retain more of their personal wealth, and lowers costs for the community because there is lessened need for care staff.
Any community that offers nursing care and therapy is strategizing for ways to reduce their financial dependence on Medicare reimbursement.21 One way to offset lower reimbursement rates is to help residents avoid having to use nursing and therapy services.
For example, in the United States in 2004, the average inflation-adjusted healthcare cost for older Americans was $13,052. Individuals with no chronic conditions incurred an average $4,718 in healthcare costs, while people with five or more conditions incurred $20,334.22 Given that the federal government expects healthcare costs to increase 25% by 2030, organizations and individuals can expect rising healthcare costs, too.
Physical activity is a mainstay of wellness programs and the wellness environment, and physical activity is one way to control those costs.
- An investment of $1 in physical activity (time and equipment) leads to $3.20 in medical cost savings.
– WHO/CDC Collaborating Center on Physical Activity and Health Promotion - Every dollar spent on physical activity programs for older adults with hip fractures results in a $4.50 return.
– US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - People who were 50 years and older and started exercising only 90 minutes a week saved an average of $2,200 per year in medical costs.23
– HealthPartners Research Foundation
With that kind of return, an investment in wellness makes sense.
“As a Continuing Care Retirement Community, the single most important reason for promoting wellness and health is to reduce the need for skilled nursing care in a nursing home.
“Since the average cost per year for one resident to be in the nursing home is approximately $100,000 to $120,000, other investments seem to pale in comparison to that. The ROI factor is simply an estimate of the savings that we might achieve by promoting health and wellness.”
Steve Surprenant
Chief Operating Officer, Mercy Community Health, Inc.
West Hartford, Connecticut
Wellness to reduce healthcare costs
- The average per-person payment for health and long-term care services for people 65+ with Alzheimer’s or other dementias was $33,007 in 2004. For people with no dementia or Alzheimer’s, the average per-person payment was $10,603.38
- People with diagnosed diabetes incur average expenditures of $11,744 per year, of which $6,649 is attributed to diabetes. Their medical expenditures, on average, are 2.3 times higher than what expenditures would be in the absence of diabetes.39
- People with diabetes who participated in a group-exercise program (SilverSneakers) through a Medicare Advantage plan had lower total healthcare costs (-$1,633) after one year than older adults who did not exercise. The trend continued after two years of participation in the program (-$1,230).40 (618 people)
- People whose functional status worsened over time had direct costs of care that were 62% higher than for [HMO] insureds who maintained high functional status over the same time period.41
- The medical costs for normal weight seniors were approximately $1,548 dollars lower than those for a minimally obese senior. Daily walking also predicted lower costs for hospitalizations and diagnostic testing.42
Continued...Keeps residents independent, longer.
