Upper Peninsula Congressman Jack Bergman joined four other lawmakers in introducing legislation designed to help older Veterans avoid injuries from costly, dangerous falls.
The SAFE STEPS for Veterans Act would establish an Office of Falls Prevention within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and create a falls prevention coordinator role. The legislation would also create a pilot program for incorporating falls prevention programs into VA home modification programs and establish an assessment for Veterans to identify those most at risk of falling. Since Veterans, on average, have more chronic conditions than their non-Veteran counterparts, additional programs could help to prevent unnecessary injuries or hospitalizations — and the massive expenses associated with falls.
“As our population continues to age, the VA must be proactive in its efforts to identify and address necessary improvements in care for older Veterans. The SAFE STEPS for Veterans Act will help drastically enhance the health and quality of life for those at risk of falls while reducing the need for costly recovery programs resulting from these preventable injuries. I’m proud to help introduce this bipartisan, commonsense bill,” Bergman said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that $50 billion a year is spent on direct medical costs for falls among older adults. Falls are caused by a variety of risk factors, such as lower body weakness, balance issues, vitamin D deficiency, hearing issues, vision issues, use of certain medications and/or home hazards. Twenty percent of these falls result in serious injuries resulting in more than 800,000 hospitalizations each year.
Falls prevention is an interdisciplinary approach that requires screening and coordination among health care providers, referral to community-based falls prevention programs and addressing home-based risks. However, neither the VA nor VHA currently have a single authority that leads falls prevention efforts for the Department. Additionally, while VA provides funding for home modification programs for certain Veterans’ populations, these programs do not incorporate evidence-based falls prevention programs into their work. The VHA also does not include a requirement that Veterans at risk be screened, leaving too many Veterans susceptible to otherwise preventable falls.
The SAFE STEPS for Veterans Act would:
- Establish an Office of Falls Prevention and creates a falls prevention coordinator within the Veterans Health Administration.
- Require the falls prevention coordinator to work with NIH to develop Veterans-specific research for evidence-based falls prevention programs.
- Require a report on Falls Prevention Initiatives in the Department.
- Make improvements to Safe Patient Handling Transfer Techniques, which ensure that injured or paralyzed Veterans are safely transferred between seated positions.
- Create a pilot program for current home modification grant programs to incorporate evidence-based falls prevention programs as a component of receipt of grant funding.
- Establish a Falls Assessment and Fall Prevention Service requirement for Veterans to screen for those at risk of falling and to better ensure care plans are developed.
Read the full text of the bill here.
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