Screening for Dementia Cuts Health Costs for Elderly in Study
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Patients diagnosed with dementia through screening ran up 13 percent less in health costs in the first year of treatment than before, according to a study suggesting wider detection could reduce U.S. medical expenses.
The one-year cost for 345 patients who were screened, found to have dementia and treated at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs clinics with specially trained nurses fell to $11,636 each on average, from $13,378 in the 12 months before diagnosis, said J. Riley McCarten, the lead researcher.