Aging/Older Adults

The Veterans Directed Home and Community Based Services program, sometimes referred to as Cash and Counseling for Veterans is designed to allow veterans who are potential candidates for nursing home placement to receive that level of care in their homes. The program provides veterans with a budget and allows them to choose their own care providers in place of receiving care services from the VA health care system. To learn more, explore this website.

Long-term services and supports (LTSS) for the elderly and younger populations with disabilities are a significant component of national health care spending. In 2009, spending for these services was $203.2 billion (almost 10 percent of all U.S. personal health care spending), most of it paid by the federal-state Medicaid program. This publication presents data on LTSS spending by major public and private sources.

How is the state of Maryland helping to keep individuals with disabilities up to date on important changes in health care policies and law? On December 8, 2010, the Maryland Department of Disabilities held a summit in order to provide information on important changes regarding “Newly Eligible” Medicaid, Medicaid Buy-In, and Medicare. Reivew the the presentation.

Person-centered living (PCL) is a way of life centered on personal preferences and values that stress dignity, choice, self-determination and individuality. In one stop, use this national resource to find important information regarding PCL. Resources are directed towards consumers, caregivers, and professionals. This website also provides ways to connect with other consumers and caregivers.

Launched this spring, this new online community for advocates working to strengthen and protect home and community-based services unites professionals in the aging and disability fields so that they can share ideas with peers, collaborate, and find resources to enhance efforts in their states. Anyone with an interest in these issues is welcome to join.

In one stop, use this national resource to find important information regarding assisted living. Resources include research findings and outcomes, exemplary assisted living practices, measures, and public policies and programs, consumer materials, links to relevant websites, international documents and abstracts, media articles, training and education materials, expert opinion pieces, and more.

The Community Living Initiative is an effort to give people with disabilities and older adults greater opportunities to live in their communities and achieve their goals. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services identified several issues and challenges in the development and refinement of new strategies to support and promote community living. HHS held four Listening Sessions around the country with state & local officials, consumers, service providers, and advocates.

In November 2010, UnitedHealthcare and the National Alliance for Caregiving conducted a study in order to better understand how family caregivers use home technologies in order to assist them in caring for their loved ones while allowing them to remain independent. Explore the study's key findings in order to learn more about 12 particular technologies that have been found to be helpful, perceived barriers to using technology, and influencing factors on family's use of technology.

This article presents an overview of the direct-care workforce, touching upon training requirements, demographics, wages and benefits, and employment settings. It notes that, despite the U.S. needing more direct-care workers than ever, job quality in the field remains extremely low. The article proceeds to list several ways that policymakers and employer practices can improve the quality of direct-care jobs. The article was written by PHI Director of Policy Research, Dorie Seavey.

This latest installment of Health Affairs' new series The Care Span, supported by The SCAN Foundation, identifies several ways to strengthen transitional care processes through health reform provisions. Most of the interventions led to reductions in readmissions through at least thirty days after discharge. To learn about the recommendations and proposed strategies, peruse this publication.