Emphasizing the need to end fragmented policymaking for the U.S. skilled nursing facility (SNF) sector to help sustain quality gains and boost cost efficiency, the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care (AQNHC) praised U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) for convening today's [4/18]Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing, and said repeated SNF Medicare funding cuts are no replacement for intelligent reforms that help coordinate care for an aging, increasingly disparate, higher acuity patient population. "Because Medicare and Medicaid together pay for the care of three out of every four SNF patients, it is crucial to assess not just the impact both programs have on the ability of providers to continue delivering high quality patient care, but also how to improve cost savings by better coordinating today's fragmented, siloed policymaking process," said Alan G. Rosenbloom, President of the Alliance. "Funding reduction after funding reduction is no substitute for rational policymaking that can help patients and help stabilize a key U.S. health sector already slated to absorb $48 billion in funding cuts between FY 2012-21."
Full Press Release and Source:
Senate Aging Committee Hearing Spotlights Need to End Fragmented SNF Policymaking
2 comments:
But will the SSCA do anything? No.
What should also be looked at is the use of OBRA Special Needs Pooled Trusts. They are being abused in Cook County (Chicago). Guardians place the wards' life long savings into the OBRA trust, qualifying them for Medicaid and then placing them into public aid SNFs and nursing homes. The guardians and attys then spend down the estate very quickly on their fees.
It's an abuse of Medicaid, and is adding to the shortage of Medicaid bed for those truly in need.
Laws need to be tightend up to eliminate this loophole and abuse of Medicaid.
The seniors are being scammed, the guardians and attornies are getting rich, and the tax payers are paying the costs of the wards' nursing homes.
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