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Here is a news release with some valuable information for seniors with possible high blood pressure, their caregivers, friends, and family:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Treating Uncontrolled High Blood Pressure Would
Annually Save 77,000 Seniors’ Lives, New Study Shows

Washington, D.C. — Using prescription medicines to treat high blood pressure (hypertension) among untreated and under treated Medicare beneficiaries would save 77,000 lives by avoiding heart attacks and strokes, according to a new study conducted by actuaries and clinicians from the independent actuarial firm, Milliman, Inc.

“Hypertension puts the lives of millions of seniors at risk,” said Alan F. Holmer, President and CEO, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), which commissioned the study. “This study shows how important the appropriate use of prescription medicines could be in saving over 77,000 lives a year. By avoiding heart attacks and strokes, fewer Medicare beneficiaries would be admitted to hospitals and nursing homes, and more could live longer, more independent lives,” added Mr. Holmer.

The Milliman study finds that, beginning in 2006 with the initiation of the Medicare prescription drug benefit, active and continuous drug treatment of 19 million untreated and under treated beneficiaries suffering from hypertension would result annually in:

- No additional health care costs
- 115,000 fewer cases of stroke
- 106,000 fewer cases of coronary artery disease (heart attack)
- 77,000 fewer deaths
- 46,000 fewer skilled-nursing facility admissions
- 4,000 fewer long-term care facility placements

“This study demonstrates how spending on medicines can have a large and favorable impact on seniors' health, while achieving savings on Medicare's hospital and other costs. Our estimates of benefits to patients and savings are conservative, in part because we focused only on avoiding stroke and cardiac events. Efforts to get more people to treat their hypertension would also help avoid other expensive conditions linked to high blood pressure, such as kidney failure and blindness,” said Bruce Pyenson, co-author of the Milliman study.

The Milliman study joins a growing list of reports— including last year’s RAND Health study — showing that hypertension is under treated with medicines. This under treatment even among insured patients emphasizes the need to build aggressive outreach strategies.

Hypertension puts millions of seniors at risk annually. One in four Americans now has hypertension. Currently, two-thirds of Medicare beneficiaries have hypertension. Thirty percent are unaware of their condition and 37 percent are aware but not treated. Among ethnic groups, African-Americans have the highest prevalence of hypertension, followed by non-Hispanic white and Mexican-American populations. This analysis illustrates the importance of taking a broad, integrated view of the Medicare drug benefit that accounts for how the benefit impacts the overall health of patients and overall Medicare spending. To reduce the number of people suffering from hypertension and its effects, outreach and patient education are essential.

“Controlling Hypertension Among Medicare Beneficiaries: Saving Lives without Additional Costs,” is available at: http://www.phrma.org/publications/policy/23.08.2005.1042.cfm.


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