Senior independence

As the congressional debate over Medicare continues, a quiet proposal designed to help visually impaired seniors lead independent lives is not getting the attention it deserves. The bill stands strong on its own merits and could be a model for future Medicare proposals.

The Medicare Vision Rehabilitation Act would provide services to approximately 6.6 million seniors, including as many as 36,000 in Maine, to help them live safer, more independent lives. It would provide, for instance, instruction on maneuvering in a grocery store or making a home safe to prevent falls. And while members of Congress are looking for ways to save money within the nation’s health care system for older Americans, this act holds potentially huge savings. According to the nonprofit Alliance for Aging Research group, loss of independence by seniors costs Medicare $26 billion a year.

The act, however, is about more than fewer hip operations or placements in nursing homes. Helping seniors remain independent for as long as possible is good for both their overall outlook and health. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported the elderly who were unable to move about freely were twice as likely to suffer stroke and 50 percent more likely to suffer from heart disease.

Only 40 members of Congress have signed on to the act so far, including Rep. John Baldacci, but more should regard the measure as the kind of preventive medicine that everyone says they support, then rarely do. Only about 2 percent of visually impaired seniors currently receive the training they need to remain in their homes. The difference this program could make to the other 98 percent could be significant.

As the number of Medicare recipients grows in the next decade or so with the retirement of the baby boomers, proposals like this one for the visually impaired become more important because they save money over the long term while offering a better quality of life for seniors. It is unlikely that Congress will overhaul Medicare this year, but it can and should support this legislation.