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“All viable proposals deserve to be vetted, studied and moved forward,”
Robert Blancato, national coordinator of the Elder Justice Coalition,
told the House Ways and Means Committee. (YouTube) |
Congress must “replace denial with a detailed, bipartisan legislative
proposal on long-term care” to address the needs of a growing older
population facing high costs for healthcare and housing, Robert
Blancato, national coordinator of the Elder Justice Coalition, told the
House Ways and Means Committee at a
hearing Thursday.
Blancato, one of six hearing witnesses, and Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA),
chairman of the committee, both noted that assisted living costs more
than $40,000 per year, on average.
“Navigating a fragmented and insufficient long-term care system can
be not only confusing and emotionally taxing, but also enormously
expensive – even unaffordable. …These high price tags weigh heavily on
aging Americans and their families as they try to plan for future
long-term care needs,” Neal said in prepared remarks, noting costs
associated with nursing homes and home healthcare as well.
Long-term care-related costs are the biggest unfunded liability
facing baby boomers, Blancato said in his prepared remarks. “Many older
adults rely on Medicaid to fund their long-term care needs. However,
states are increasingly considering waivers that would block-grant
Medicaid, which could lead to individual caps on care funding,” he said.
Approximately 16.5% of assisted living residents rely on Medicaid to
cover their assisted living services, according to the National Center
for Assisted Living.
The
National Investment Center on Seniors Housing & Care-funded study
that found that 54% of the 14.4 million middle-income older adults in
2029 in the United States will lack the financial resources to pay for
senior living and care, Blancato said, indicates that “future ability to
privately pay [for long-term care needs] may be in jeopardy.”
The witness said “all viable proposals deserve to be vetted, studied
and moved forward,” including those involving Medicare and Medicaid
reform, to address long-term care costs. “I believe we can all agree
that something needs to be done,” he said.
A “real national solution,” Blancato said, should include:
- A strong Medicaid program that continues to support home- and community-based services over institutional care.
- Possibly a long-term care benefit in Medicare.
- Use
of the tax code to provide a “meaningful” tax credit for family
caregivers and a tax deduction for the purchase of private long-term
care insurance.
‘Disturbing pattern of abdication’
In addition to cost issues, Blancato noted in his prepared remarks,
“We see a disturbing pattern of abdication by certain federal agencies
vested by law with the responsibility to ensure quality care in nursing
homes, assisted living and long-term care facilities.” He in part called
for additional funding and training for long-term care ombudsmen “so
they can expand their important work into assisted living.”
Hearing witness Richard Mollot, executive director of the Long Term
Care Community Coalition, told committee members that alternatives to
nursing home must be affordable, accessible and safe.
“Seniors and families want and deserve options to nursing homes that
provide safety in a more home-like setting,” he said. “While most states
are rightfully opening up assisted living to Medicaid beneficiaries,
the utter lack of federal standards in this sector has, unsurprisingly,
led to increasing reports of rampant abuse and neglect. Our seniors and
their families deserve better.”
Mollot also cited “inadequate access to humane dementia care” as an issue involving assisted living and nursing home operators.
“Far too many facilities fail to anticipate the needs of individuals
with dementia or equip their staff with the knowledge and skills
necessary to provide comfort and care to residents who are experiencing
common behavioral and psychological symptoms of the disease,” he said.
“In what other industry would it be acceptable to be unable to meet the
needs of the majority of one’s customers?”
Care planning benefit eludes most
Hearing witness Robert Egge, chief public policy officer of the Alzheimer’s Association, shared the findings of
a recent study
that found that in 2017, less than 1% of Medicare beneficiaries living
with dementia received comprehensive dementia-specific care planning
that could improve care, quality of life and medication management as
well as reduce hospitalizations and emergency department visits. This is
despite the fact that since 2017, physicians and other healthcare
professionals have been able to obtain reimbursement for providing such
care planning.
“For the benefits of care planning to reach more Americans affected
by Alzheimer’s, more clinicians must use the care planning benefit,” he
said. The bipartisan Improving Hope for Alzheimer’s Act (H.R. 1873 / S.
880), Egge added, would help achieve this goal by requiring the
Department of Health and Human Services to educate clinicians and report
to Congress on ways to increase the benefit’s use and on related
barriers.
“This bill has already garnered significant bipartisan support in
both chambers, and we urge the Committee on Ways and Means to hold a
markup,” he said. “We look forward to working with the bill’s sponsors
and committee leadership to ensure its movement in the full House and
Senate.”
Watch the hearing
here. Read witness testimony
here. Read Neal’s opening statement
here.
Full Article & Source:
‘Replace denial with proposal’ on long-term care, House committee told
