Paul Schuster of Allenton, Wis., is a self-described "not doctor-going person." He went years without going to the physician.
Yet when his wife convinced him to do a checkup at home through a program called HouseCalls, run by UnitedHealthcare division Optum, he discovered his blood pressure was too high and agreed to go a see a physician. There, he found out he had lung cancer.
"Paul wouldn't be here today had it not been for the HouseCalls program," his wife Judy Schuster said in a statement. "I've been told by several of his physicians that if we hadn't addressed the problem when it was addressed, he wouldn't have made it."
Stories like Mr. Schuster's illustrate what was confirmed by a RAND Corp. study of the program, published Monday in Health Affairs.
The study found Optum's HouseCalls program reduced hospital admissions by 14 percent for UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage beneficiaries within up to a year after their home visit. Nursing home admissions were also reduced among those enrolled in the program and physician office visits increased 2 to 6 percent, as compared to other Medicare and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries not eligible for the Optum program.
"These results and the Schusters' story demonstrate why UnitedHealthcare offers HouseCalls and other high-touch personalized services to help people maintain and maximize their health," Sam Ho, MD, CMO of UnitedHealthcare, said in a statement. "Because of these efforts, more Medicare beneficiaries are learning about opportunities for preventive care, becoming engaged in their healthcare and identifying health issues early, when they are easier to treat."
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