For those interested in long-term care, the House Democrats' consensus health reform bill is pretty disappointing. Unlike the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee version, it includes no proposal for national long-term care insurance. And it largely ignores efforts to expand access to home care for those on Medicaid, who now often can only get care in nursing facilities, or to better coordinate care [...]
The Obama Administration has given a boost to Senator Ted Kennedy's national long-term care insurance program, the CLASS Act. In a July 6 letter to Kennedy, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sibelius said President Obama believes "it is appropriate to include the CLASS Act as part of health reform." Obama co-sponsored the bill when he was in the Senate, but [...]
Supporters of Senator Ted Kennedy's CLASS Act, which would create a national long-term care insurance program, are bragging that the plan would produce $59 billion for the government over the next 10 years, money they say could help pay for health reform. As much as I like the ideas behind the CLASS Act, this claim is both misleading and counterproductive. It [...]
The Democrats on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee have, as I expected, included three key long-term care services proposals in their massive 615-page health reform bill. The measure would require states to offer the same access to home and community care as they currently provide for skilled nursing facilities under Medicaid. It would provide new incentives for training both paid [...]
I've just started a column for Kaiser Health News, a brand new independent news service. I'll be writing twice a month on long-term care issues, looking at policy, new research, and on-the-ground community ideas for improving long-term supports and services. My first piece, published this morning, looks at Senate HELP Committee Chairman Ted Kennedy's CLASS Act. While the measure, which would create national long-term [...]
USA Today published my op-ed column today on the need to include long-term care services and supports in health reform. It is nice to see that USA Today is so interested in this all important subject. All of us who are caring for our parents know why Congress should not miss this opportunity to address the needs of those receiving care as well as their families. [...]
If you are impoverished and unable to care for yourself, Medicaid is required by law to provide long-term services--in a nursing home. Although the frail elderly and younger people with disabilities overwhelmingly prefer to stay at home, states are under no obligation to offer care in the community. So here is an idea: Why doesn't Medicaid make home care the default option for assistance? [...]
Senate Health Committee Chair Ted Kennedy (D-MA) will include a major restructuring of long-term care services in his version of health reform, due out in late May. But getting those changes through Congress "is like pushing a rock uphill," says Connie Garner, Kennedy's top staffer on aging and disabilities issues. Garner spoke yesterday at a terrific conference sponsored by Health Affairs and [...]
Congress and President Obama say they want to pass a massive health reform bill this year. But will they include desperately-needed changes in the way we deliver and pay for long-term care services for the frail elderly and those with disabilities?Right now, that is an open question. Some key lawmakers are pushing for major reform, but others are reluctant to [...]