Wall Street Journal's Rundown of LTC Cuts
Health care stakeholders hoped this week the lame-duck session of Congress would examine a stimulus package that includes an increase to the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP), the federal matching funds that states receive to fund their Medicaid programs.
Many states, such as New York, are threatening to cut Medicaid to make up for budget shortfalls.
According to a recent Wall Street Journal story, at least 15 states, including Alabama, Virginia and Massachusetts, are targeting funding for programs that allow low-income direct-care consumers to receive personal care in their own homes.
The story says the cutbacks are exacerbating the already long waiting lists for home-care support services in many states. With forced reductions due to state budget shortfalls, the low-income elderly and disabled may be forced into nursing homes.
Obama’s challenge
If Congress doesn’t get to it first, President-elect Barack Obama has said promoting an economic-stimulus package that includes needed Medicaid funds for states will be his first order of business when he takes office.
Tom Daschle
The new president will also be under pressure to provide universal healthcare. He’s one step closer by offering the job of Health and Human Services secretary this week to former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), who has been outspoken about his desire to enact a government-funded health care insurance program to help cover the approximately 40 million Americans who do not have health coverage.
According to a recent McNight’s story, a $100 billion stimulus package that contains $37.8 billion in additional Medicaid funding that was introduced by Senate Democrats Monday, with hopes of voting on it by Wednesday, could have easily failed because of a still powerless Obama and a whole host of other issues. As a result no vote was taken.
Severe cuts in state Medicaid programs will make it difficult for states to continue efforts to improve the quality of long-term care services by investing in the direct-care workforce. With America needing 4 million direct-care workers by 2016—more than the number of school teachers needed for grades K-12–the Obama administration and the next Congress face a daunting challenge.
It has occurred to me that the concept of creating jobs by our federal government for such things as infrastructure(bridge building, road repair, etc.) is not so far away from developing an economic stimulus package that would benefit our direct care force, making care of the elderly and disabled more attractive wage wise, thereby attracting larger numbers of people to that job path which would begin to address the increasing need of direct care staff as the elderly and disabled population continue to grow. The jobs don’t need to be created…they are already there…they simply need the economic stimulus to draw those who are in need of jobs to that field. Studies have shown that, in this age of job loss, the field of human services, especially those related to hands-on care, will be one of the next major work opportunities. Should we not ask our next president and legislators to financially support this new opportunity to put people to work doing a job that so desperately needs to be done?
I agree. I recently heard a man on NPR talk specifically about raising the wages of direct care workers and service workers. His arguement is that these are the people who will really spend their money because they have many needs and that would stimulate the economy more than giving it to all working people, who may save the money or pay off credit cards. Sounded good to me and is much needed!
**I recently heard a man on NPR talk specifically about raising…**
You may be thinking of Robert Kuttner. We have a post referencing that interview here:
http://tinyurl.com/5wovqt