October 1996

Cover

 
  • Medicare Managed Care: Has Its Time Come?

    The shift in emphasis in Medicare from traditional fee-for-service to managed care raises issues for low-income Medicare beneficiaries concerning coverage, due process rights, and quality assurance. This article describes initiatives spurring the growth of managed care in Medicare, as well as integration of Medicare acute services with long-term care, and discusses the implications of this growth.

    By Patricia DeMichele and Vicki Gottlich

  • Consumer Advocacy in Assisted Living

    Assisted living is marketed as a new life-style option designed to provide comfort, autonomy, and security to older persons and their families at rates that are lower than the private-pay rates for nursing homes. This article describes the legal implications of assisted living and the problems consumers may face in choosing to move to an assisted living facility.

    By Dorothy Siemon, Stephanie Edelstein, and Zita Dresner

  • Not Just for Kids: Including Elders in the Family Court Concept

    A family court system brings together under one judicial administrative division jurisdiction over all cases relating to families. This article examines the potential of family court to ensure justice for the elderly.

    By Erica F. Wood and Lori A. Stiegel

  • Mediation of Disputes Arising in Adult Guardianship Cases

    Mediation can help parties to an adult guardianship petition identify their disputes with one another, empower the older person in the process, and have a real impact on the problems underlying the perceived need for a guardianship. This article describes the use of mediation as a means of dispute resolution in adult guardianship cases.

    By Susan D. Hartman

  • Are Claims Under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Social Security Act Inconsistent?

    Recently, many courts have held that a claimant who files for disability benefits under the Social Security Act is estopped from pursuing a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This article discusses the different definitions of disability under both the ADA and the Social Security Act and some of the cases on both sides of this issue.

    By Michael R. Schuster and Stephen M. Koslow

  • Exclusion from Services and the Americans with Disabilities Act: Defining Program Goals Is Key

    Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act may be applied to challenge the exclusion of particular groups of persons with disabilities from the receipt of state services. This article highlights the importance of defining the goal of a program in determining whether the exclusion amounts to discrimination under the Act.

    By Dorothy Siemon and Patticia DeMichele

  • Tobacco: A Legal and Policy Issue of the Elderly

    Since modern cigarettes were introduced in 1913, millions of lives have been lost and billions of health care dollars spent as a result of tobacco-related diseases. This article describes how older Americans are particularly affected by this devastation and discusses legal and policy issues concerning tobacco that affect elders and require action by the legal community.

    By Saidy Barinaga-Burch and James A. Bergman

  • Maintaining High Impact Legal Services for the Most Needy Elderly in Times of Change

    In light of funding cuts and restrictions imposed on the activities of legal services programs, this article discusses how joint planning and advocacy efforts of the aging and legal services networks can result in the preservation of impact advocacy as a key component of legal services for the most needy older persons.

    By Penelope A. Hommel