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Alzheimer’s groups and aging office press senators on proposed cognitive screening at Medicare wellness visits; committee defers
Summary
The Senate committee heard testimony urging cognitive assessments during Medicare wellness visits but deferred the measure while agencies and advocates seek a pilot approach and data‑privacy safeguards.
Senators heard advocates and agency officials press for a measure that would require cognitive assessments during certain Medicare wellness visits while asking for pilot language and data protections.
Caroline Cuddy Rao of the Executive Office on Aging told the committee the office supports the bill’s intent but recommended changes to avoid mandating assessments statewide without first testing the approach. "Our recommendations in our testimony is to amend the bill to ask to offer the to offer it instead of mandating the cognitive assessments," Cuddy Rao said, adding concerns about HIPAA compliance and the data elements the legislation would collect.
The Alzheimer’s Association urged retaining a mandatory assessment requirement on one section of the draft while deferring to the Executive Office on Aging for the data‑collection and HIPAA elements. Kobi Chok of the association asked senators to include Medicare Part C as well as Part B in the bill’s coverage so the measure would reach more patients in Hawaii.
Why it matters: Early detection of cognitive impairment can give patients and families time to make plans, access services and participate in care decisions. Several witnesses described the personal benefits of early diagnosis; Peter Black, a retired professor who testified, said an early diagnosis allowed him and his wife to prepare and make future decisions.
Committee action: The committee held testimony and later deferred the bill for further work and to await companion legislation in the House. Members asked sponsors and agencies to consider a pilot project and to clarify data‑privacy protections before advancing a mandate.
What to watch: If sponsors adopt a pilot model and clarify HIPAA protections and data elements, the bill could return with narrower, operational language designed to allow phased implementation and evaluation.
Ending: Supporters and executive‑branch staff said they would continue negotiating text to balance a screening mandate with privacy and implementation concerns.
