A demonstration proposal that would create a new kind of
continuing care retirement community would save state Medicaid programs upwards
of 20% on long-term care costs, according to a report from Avalere.
The proposal would create Senior Health and Housing
Initiative for Transformation (SHIFT) communities. These communities would
bring healthcare, housing and long-term care together in one location and pay
for the services by combining public and private funds. It would pool funding from Medicare, Medicaid and
seniors' home equity to provide acute care, long-term care services and housing
to seniors who live in these communities.
Medicaid would spend about 20% less on an initial cohort of
1,000 SHIFT enrollees than it would for the same population under current law,
the report found. The
paper was written on behalf of Wesley Enhanced Living.