Elder Fall Prevention Act of 2003

Bill: 108-hr-3513
Sponsor: Rep. Pallone, Frank, Jr. [D-NJ-6]
Introduced: 2003-11-18 in the House
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Accident prevention
Apartment houses
Architecture and the disabled
Building construction
Caregivers
Commerce
Community health services
Congress
Congressional reporting requirements
Continuing education
Continuum of care
Disabled
Drug utilization
Economics and Public Finance
Education
Emergency Management
Eye diseases
Federal aid to education
Federal aid to health facilities
Federal aid to research
Federal aid to the aged
Geriatrics
Government Operations and Politics
Government publicity
Governmental investigations
Health counseling
Health education
Health surveys
Higher education
Home repair and improvement
Housing and Community Development
Housing for the aged
Life care communities
Medicaid
Medical economics
Medical education
Medical research
Medical screening
Medical statistics
Medical tests
Medicare
Nursing homes
Paramedical personnel
Public-private partnerships
Rehabilitation of the disabled
Research grants
Science, Technology, Communications
State laws
Technological innovations

Summary:
action_date: 2003-11-18
text: 
Elder Fall Prevention Act of 2003 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to direct the Administration on Aging within the Department of Health and Human Services to: (1) oversee and support a three-year national education campaign by the National Safety Council focusing on ways to reduce the risk of elder falls and prevent repeat falls; (2) provide grants for State coalitions for local education campaigns addressing reduction and prevention of elder falls; and (3) provide grants and contracts for continuing education to health professionals to effect geriatric fall prevention.
 
Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to: (1) conduct and support research concerning various topics, including high-risk elders, risk and protective factors, fall reduction strategies, fall prevention interventions, diagnosis and treatment of victims, barriers to adopting proven interventions, and the effectiveness of community programs in preventing assisted living and nursing home falls; (2) support the development of ways to reduce falls among very high risk elders; and (3) award grants to enable organizations to provide professional education for physicians and health professionals in elder fall prevention.
 
Requires the Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to oversee and support demonstration and research projects to be carried out by the Council and other qualified organizations in the following areas: (1) a multi-State demonstration project assessing the utility of targeted fall risk screening and referral programs; (2) programs targeting newly-discharged fall victims at high risk for second falls; (3) private-public partnerships to develop technologies to prevent falls and prevent or reduce injuries from falls; (4) hospital-based fall prevention and treatment centers; (5) Medicaid sponsored community projects of the type adopted by Pennsylvania, New York, and Florida; and (6) grants to States and hospitals to expand such hospital and Medicaid programs. 
 
Requires the Secretary to provide grants for: (1) fall prevention programs in residential and institutional settings; and (2) demonstration program evaluations.
 
Directs the Secretary to review the effects of falls on the costs of the Medicare and Medicaid programs and the potential for reducing costs by expanding covered services. States that such review shall include a review of reimbursement policies. 


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2003-12-04
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2003-11-18
text: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
action_date: 2003-11-18
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2003-11-18
text: Introduced in House