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July 26, 2006 - Efforts to give thousands of Massachusetts senior citizens and disabled adults a greater voice in how they receive long-term care services took a major step forward today as the Senate passed a bill to drastically revamp the delivery of long term care across the state.
S.2273, An Act Regarding Choice of Long Term Care Setting, was supported by Senator Richard T. Moore (D-Uxbridge) and filed by Senator Sue Tucker, the Senate Chair of Elder Affairs.
“Long-term care is one of the most serious issues senior citizens and their families face,” said Senator Moore. “I was pleased to have guided this bill through the Health Care Financing Committee. This bill allows them to choose their setting of long-term care, including the option of staying at home. ”
In addition to satisfying public demand, the bill will help save taxpayers dollars and ease already strained state Medicaid budgets. MassHealth presently pays roughly $51,720 per member annually to house long-term care clients in nursing homes. This legislation would allow the same clients to remain at home for approximately half the cost.
“Other states have already increased the use of home-and community-based services while preserving high quality nursing homes for those with greater needs,” said Senator Tucker. “This bill will set Massachusetts on the same course.”
Presently Massachusetts funds long term care services through MassHealth and under current law, a person is entitled to a nursing home bed if he or she meets the financial and health needs criteria. While individuals repeatedly express their desire to remain in their homes, only a certain number of home care slots are available under the existing long term care structure.
This bill would even things out by creating a “long term care benefit” without reference to a setting. Individuals who meet MassHealth financial and clinical eligibility requirements for long term care services would then decide where to receive care. The funding determined to meet the needs each client would then follow that person to his or her location of choice.
S.2273 passed the Senate by a vote of 38-0 and now heads to Governor Romney’s desk for consideration.
To learn more about Senator Moore’s legislation and his work in the Massachusetts Senate, log onto his web site at
www.senatormoore.com
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