Aging/Older Adults

This policy brief provides information on Washington, DC and the 37 states that are planning to better integrate care for participants who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid. The Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) will allow states to select a capitated model, or a managed fee-for-service model, or they can use both models. Included is a chart explaining the main differences between the two models.

In an effort to improve care & reduce costs, states & the federal government are seeking new ways to provide services to people eligible for both Medicare & Medicaid. Missing from the discourse are the voices of these dual eligibles. Changes to the way their care is organized & delivered could have profound effects on their health, quality of life, & satisfaction. This project aims to complement state & federal efforts by offering perspectives on what duals want from their models of care.

The MO HealthNet Division administers the MFP program called My Life, My Way, My Community. This site is an example of how this state presents material to the community about the program. See samples of the Initial Application, Operational Protocol, Brochure and Participation Agreement.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) requires that quality of life surveys be conducted for Money Follows the Person participants transitioning from habilitation centers and nursing facilities into the community. Review this survey as a potential template for your MFP program. This website recruits potential surveyor applicants and offers a sample Surveyor Letter, Application, Confidentiality Statement, Screening and Vendor Input Form.

These Guiding Principles were developed to help to preserve the rights of individuals under participant direction, no matter what form or model, if and when workers choose to form a union. The NRCPDS cover letter, Guiding Principles, and NRCPDS Director Kevin Mahoney's signing ceremony remarks are available here.

This Toolkit provides information for communities interested in working together to develop a one-call or one-click service for transportation to fit their own circumstances. On November 9th, the Federal Transit Administration announced $34.6 million would be awarded to 55 communities for resource centers. Review the website for practical guides and tools on implementation. Additionally there are community profiles and webinars to provide best practice examples.

This paper provides recommendations on changes to improve delivery of the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) program so that it can more fully serve the purposes for which the program was established. It is the last in a series of four papers that highlight pressing issues facing dual eligibles and provide recommendations to the federal Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office (MMCO), state Medicaid agencies and other interested policymakers and stakeholders on how to address them.

This survey contains daily private-pay rates for private & semi-private rooms in licensed nursing homes, monthly base rates for assisted living communities, hourly rates for home health aides from licensed agencies & agency-provided homemaker companion services, & daily rates for adult day services across the US. Costs for this survey were calculated for each service provider in an area & were aggregated across all providers to compute a statewide average cost.

Medicaid officials in every state are enacting a variety of cost cutting measures as states’ spending is projected to increase 28.7% in FY2012 to make up for the loss of federal stimulus money. The survey finds cost containment actions ranging from restrictions on payments to providers & benefits, to new copayments for beneficiaries & additional efforts to contain the costs of prescription drugs. States are also trying to make their programs more efficient through a number of procedures.

Two new surveys recently released by the National Family Caregivers Association reveals what family caregivers fear most: first, their loved one's general health and physical decline, and second, the fear that Alzheimer's will take away their loved one's ability to communicate. A second survey tinds Family Caregivers are most concerned about respite care, personal health and finances.