Press Release: End-of-Life Care Challenges Increase as Population Ages

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For Immediate Release                                                                                                
January 31, 2002                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
CONTACT:
LeAnne DeFrancesco
Bonnie Austin
202.292.6700

End-of-Life Care Challenges Increase as Population Ages
HCFO program and Last Acts Campaign Tackle Tough Questions of Financing, Organizing Care

News Advisory:

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Changes in Health Care Financing and Organization (HCFO) program and Last Acts Campaign are co-sponsoring an invitational meeting titled "Financing End-of-Life Care: Challenges for an Aging Population," on Wednesday, February 6, 2002. Media are invited.

Sessions will focus on the complexity of delivering end-of-life care, the role of public financing of end-of-life care, and innovative models of organization and delivery. The meeting will cover everything that decision makers need to know about end-of-life care, including who is involved in end-of-life decisions, when end-of-life care services should be accessed and what they cost, and why there is a need to reform current end-of-life policies.

Presenters and panelists include Marilyn Moon, Ph.D., of the Urban Institute, William Novelli of AARP, and Joanne Lynn, M.D., of the Center to Improve Care of the Dying, among others. Representatives from several advocacy organizations, universities, and health plans will also participate.

WHO: Changes in Health Care Financing and Organization and Last Acts Campaign

WHAT: An invitational meeting, "Financing End-of-Life Care: Challenges for an Aging Population"

WHEN: Wednesday, February 6, 8:30 a.m. - 4:15 p.m.

WHERE: Loews L'Enfant Plaza Hotel, 480 L'Enfant Plaza, Washington, D.C.

For more information about the meeting, go to www.hcfo.net. Media wishing to attend should RSVP to LeAnne DeFrancesco at the number above.

AcademyHealth (www.academyhealth.org) serves as the national program office for the HCFO program. The program's mission is to serve as a bridge between the policy and research communities, funding the production of useable and timely information on health care policy and market developments for dissemination to stakeholders in the public and private policy arenas.

Last Acts (www.lastacts.org) is a call-to-action campaign reaching healthcare professionals and
the public. Its goal is to bring death-related issues out in the open and help individuals and organizations pursue better ways to care for the dying. The coalition supports palliative care, an approach focused on easing pain and symptoms and improving physical, emotional and spiritual well-being for the dying and their families. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter serves as Last Acts' honorary chair.