Wednesday 12 December 2018

CMS Announces Up to 270 Medicare Advantage Plans Will Include Massage Therapy in 2019

There’s good news for Medicare Advantage enrollees who like to have more choices and not-so-good news for those who find the enrollment process daunting.The total number of Medicare Advantage plans has increased across the nation. 
And some plans are for the first time offering new perks, such as therapeutic massage and caregiver support services. “The 2019 Medicare Advantage plans overall have richer benefits than in previous years,” Fischer said.
Medicare open enrollment began Oct. 15 and will end on Dec. 7. During this time you can choose and change plans. Your coverage starts Jan. 1.
If you’re new to Medicare or plan to change coverage, you need to first decide whether you want to sign up for traditional Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan.
Traditional Medicare refers to Medicare Part A and B, for which the federal government sets reimbursement rates. Part A covers hospitals and Part B covers doctors visits and medical tests. You can supplement traditional Medicare with Medigap plans to cover costs not covered by traditional Medicare, such as deductibles and co-pays. You can also choose stand-alone prescription drug plans called Medicare Part D to cover your drug costs, which are offered by private insurers.

Medicare Part A’s in-patient deductible that beneficiaries will pay when admitted to the hospital is $1,364 in 2019, an increase of $24 from the previous year, according to Medicare.
Medicare Part B premiums are also going up slightly from $134 to $135.50. The annual deductible for the program has also gone up by $2, to $185, according to Medicare.
Meanwhile, the average monthly basic Part D premiums are expected to fall, from $33.59 to $32.50.
Then there’s Medicare Advantage.
These are plans that are offered by private insurers with Medicare’s approval that bundle coverage and can be easier to manage. Most cover drugs. If you pick one that doesn’t, you can supplement it with Medicare Part D plan. But unlike traditional Medicare, these plans have various deductibles and out-of-pocket costs. Make sure to take into account all those expenses before deciding on a plan.
Medicare Advantage plans are also specific to each county, so double-check that the plan you pick is for your county.
Medicare Advantage enrollment is expected to reach an all-time high in 2019. The federal government is projecting that one-third of Medicare beneficiaries — almost 23 million individuals — will sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan during open enrollment this year. That’s an 11.5 percent increase from last year.
On average, Medicare Advantage monthly premiums are estimated to decrease to $28 from an average of $29.81 in 2018.
Also new this year with Medicare Advantage are new supplemental benefits, such as in-home care, caregiver support services and therapeutic massage, which are offered by 270 plans nationwide. These benefits are expected to be more widely available in 2020, Medicare officials said.
Lipschutz advised consumers to find out whether the added benefits are available to all enrollees or only to ones who have certain chronic conditions.
“Ask about the extra benefits. Ask, ‘is the extra thing being offered worth other tradeoffs?’ Transportation might be great but are the plan’s out-of-pocket costs higher?” he said.
The worst thing you can do is take no action, even if you’re happy with your current plan, experts said. Plans change their networks and drug formularies each year, and if you haven’t read the information they’ve been mailing you in recent months, you may be in for a surprise come January.
You can use several resources to find a plan that’s best for you. SHINE counselors from the state Department of Elder Affairs can give you unbiased advice. If you’re tech-savvy, you can compare plans on medicare.gov. You can also speak with insurance brokers.
If you’re turning 65, your insurance company may automatically switch you from your work or marketplace policy to its Medicare Advantage plan. If you have Medicare and receive a low-income subsidy, you should also watch for documents that require you to recertify your eligibility.
And here’s one last piece of advice: watch out for scams and marketing violations. If you think someone representing a plan is violating the marketing rules, call the insurance company or your local SHINE office.


Click here and here for more information

Tuesday 10 July 2018

Lymphatic Massage Therapy

Dr. Andrew Weil believes that lymphatic massage is a worthwhile treatment for lymphedema, but he emphasizes that individuals who do not have lymphedema do not need lymphatic drainage, no matter what health claims are made for it. 

Some internet sites warn of the health consequences of “sluggish lymphatic flow” and promote lymphatic drainage for all manner of supposed benefits ranging from detoxification of the body, regeneration of burned, injured or wrinkled tissue, anti-aging effects, and relief of sinusitis, bronchitis, ear infections, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, constipation, insomnia, memory loss, cellulite, and obesity. 

However, Dr. Weil has not seen good evidence supporting any of these effects of manual lymphatic drainage, and neither have I. As long as your lymphatic tissues or lymph nodes have not been damaged or removed, there is no need to worry about lymphatic flow and drainage.  If you do have lymphedema due to removal of lymph nodes, please give us a call for an MLD session today. 

If you'd like to find our more about lymphatic drainage, you can read the rest of Dr. Weil's article here.  Or you can go to the National Lymphedema Network by clicking here.  

Marsha McArthur, LMT, BCTMB, DOMP 
Asclepieion Massage Therapy
The Art & Science of Healing Bodywork
www.asclepieion.massagetherapy.com
520-355-0819

Wednesday 13 June 2018

What's in a Name?


In ancient Greece and Rome, the Asclepieion were healing temples sacred to the god Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine. These healing temples were a place where people would visit to receive either treatment or some sort of healing, whether it was spiritual or physical.  Starting around 350 BC, the cult of Asclepius became increasingly popular and pilgrims flocked to the Asklepieion to be healed.

Pilgrims usually slept overnight and reported their dreams to a priest the following day. The priests prescribed various therapies which included fasting, meditation, hypnosis, chanting, visits to the baths or gymnasium and massage. These temples included carefully controlled spaces conducive to healing, and the attendants at the temples were known as “Therapeutae,” meaning “to serve, or heal” and is the root for the modern-day word, therapist. The rod of Asklepius, a snake-entwined staff, remains a symbol of medicine today, and will be used as our logo. 
Now that you know what our name means, come see us for a great therapeutic massage!

Marsha McArthur, LMT, BCTMB, DOMP 
Asclepieion Massage Therapy
The Art & Science of Healing Bodywork
www.asclepieion.massagetherapy.com

520-355-0819

How Massage Therapy Helps Veterans and Trauma Survivors

Massage therapy might be a beneficial complementary treatment to help ease symptoms. I am also a veteran, with 12 years in the Air Force.  

Click here to read more, or give me a call to set up a session at my studio.  

Marsha McArthur, LMT, BCTMB, DOMP 
Asclepieion Massage Therapy
The Art & Science of Healing Bodywork
www.asclepieion.massagetherapy.com

520-355-0819
Vacuum Therapy is a Powerful Tool to Free the Fascia


Decompression techniques that use a vacuum tool (a.k.a. cupping) are relatively new in the manual therapy arena, and are quickly becoming widely used by a variety of healthcare professionals. Call us today for your own cupping session!

Click here to read more.

Marsha McArthur, LMT, BCTMB, DOMP
Asclepieion Massage Therapy
The Art & Science of Healing Bodywork
www.asclepieion.massagetherapy.com
520-355-0819

Looking after joint mobility as we age

How manual osteopathy and massage therapy can help...Give us a call today for an appointment!

Click here to read more.

Marsha McArthur, LMT, BCTMB, DOMP
Asclepieion Massage Therapy
The Art & Science of Healing Bodywork
www.asclepieion.massagetherapy.com

520-355-0819
Reconfirmed: Artificial Sweeteners Make You Fat and Sick

If you’re still holding out hope that science will eventually prove artificial sweeteners to be beneficial, or at the very least harmless, you’re likely to be disappointed. Again and again, research shows no-calorie sweeteners such as aspartame and sucralose cause the same problems as excess sugar, and then some.

Click here to read more!

Marsha McArthur, LMT, BCTMB, DOMP
Asclepieion Massage Therapy
The Art & Science of Healing Bodywork
www.asclepieion.massagetherapy.com
520-355-0819

CMS Announces Up to 270 Medicare Advantage Plans Will Include Massage Therapy in 2019 There’s good news for Medicare Advantage enrollees ...