Add California to the list of states that are considering creating a public insurance option to cover long-term care.

This latest effort is being led by state Sen. Richard Pan, M.D., a pediatrician and Democrat from Sacramento. He announced the legislative push Monday, ABC reported.

Richard Pan

Older Californians are frequently forced to spend down their assets in order to qualify for Medicaid to cover long-term care, which Pan said makes no sense.

“Often times, people will have to spend down their money basically, and then they end up on Medi-Cal and then its taxpayers having to pitch in as well,” he said. “No longer can we sit idle and do nothing about this alarming crisis.”

Pan and a coalition of advocates for legislation that would create a roadmap toward a long-term care benefit for middle-class Californians, according to the report. Other states, such as New York and Washington, have mulled the creation of a public long-term care benefit in recent months.