Affordable Care Act (ACA)

Statistics show a significant percentage increase in older persons able to receive LTSS outside of nursing homes, however unnecessary institutionalization is still a routine problem. This report clearly delineates the limitations on progress, including differences in Medicaid structure around nursing home vs. HCBS waiver coverage. The authors recommend specific steps that federal and state governments should take to reduce unnecessary institutionalization.

Review slides from the CMS Leadership Summit on building capacity and coordinating support for family caregivers and the LTSS direct service workforce, held on September 16-17, 2010. Topics include ACA Opportunities for Family Caregivers and the Direct Care Workforce; Assistance and Support Services for Caregivers; DSW Policy Issues and Challenges; Building Capacity and Coordinating Support for Family Caregivers and the LTSS Direct Care Workforce.

Access the latest information on health care reform and learn how it impacts seniors and those with disabilities in your community. Resources include new grant releases, updates, fact sheets, blog links, state-by-state reports, CMS guidance and White House.gov links.

Dual eligibles comprise only 17% of the Medicare population but represent 28% of Medicare beneficiaries with five or more chronic conditions. Find key facts and analyses on older Americans and long-term care issues. DataBriefs examine health and supportive services and the people who use them, while exploring opportunities to improve care through the implementation of health reform. Each Databrief is offered in the form of a Powerpoint presentation and one page PDF.

A number of health reform provisions give states additional options for financing HCBS services. This brief analyzes scenarios whereby states, which have significant roles in implementing many aspects of the ACA, might implement a combination of new Medicaid state plan options, enhanced Medicaid matching payments, and demonstration projects to expand HCBS care. In determining whether to adopt these options, states will assess whether they improve upon the current Medicaid authorities they use.

How does health reform legislation effect eldercare and disability employers and direct-care workers? Review a chart that summarizes eight health-reform provisions that have either taken effect already, or will do so in the near future. These provisions give direct-care workers and their families numerous opportunities to access more affordable health care before 2014. Find a link to this sheet, as well the Health Care for Health Care Workers website, which contains the full series.

Find an analysis of changes the new law makes to Medicaid, Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage that impact low income individuals in particular. There is also a brief discussion of the coverage expansion and its potential impact on this population. This brief is part of a series of issue briefs prepared by NSCLC which discuss the impact of the new law on low income older adults.

Review testimony presented at a public hearing in California. Among the recommendations for taking advantage of ACA’s opportunites are state support of the CLASS program, enhancement of care coordination and service integration for vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities including increased access to ADRCs, exploration of the potential to apply for enhanced Medicaid HCBS options, and identification of ways to support and grow the direct care workforce.

Millions of low-income adults without children who currently cannot qualify for coverage, as well as many low-income parents and children now covered through the CHIP program will become eligible for Medicaid. These programs are expected to cover an additional 16 million people by 2019. This brief provides the details of the benefit and cost-sharing rules that will govern the coverage available to newly-eligible adult Medicaid beneficiaries.

This report is the latest in a series of annual reports on Medicaid long-term care expenditures. Table 1 presents national expenditures data for FY 1997–FY 2009. Tables A through T present state-by-state expenditures data for FY 2004–FY 2009 for specific categories of service. Tables U, V, and W present the distribution of each state’s LTC expenditures among institutional and community-based services.