Q: What was one of the most important things you told the Obama transition team when it asked for recommendations?
A: Our plan for financing long-term care through a national insurance plan instead of the current government-imposed poverty plan could have cut Medicaid expenditures for long-term care from $100 billion to $50 billion if implemented years ago.
Q: What are two of the main goals of your national plan?
A: Insure families against their biggest financial exposure and cut Medicaid long-term care expenditures. Senator Kennedy’s CLASS ACT, which President Obama supported, accomplishes this objective. It should be included in the president’s plan. This plan is actuarially sound, available to all, and helps people stay at home.
Q: What was your recommendation regarding staffing?
A: Make $4 billion available to stabilize America’s 16,000 nursing homes, many of which are under-funded. If done through the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) mechanism, $3 billion should go to nursing homes with a direct flow-through to direct care workers, and $1 billion to expand home and community services to help family caregivers keep seniors and others facing frailties at home.
From the February 01, 2009 Issue of McKnight's Long-Term Care News
