Thursday, February 05, 2004
Nebraska Medicaid reform model gaining supporters in other states
[Liz Taylor, "New report offers model for long-term care reform," The Seattle Times, 26 January 2004.]
Flint Hills recently brought Stephen Moses of the Center for Long Term Care Financing in to speak about the situation in Kansas and his recent audit of Medicaid in neighboring Nebraska. His report on Nebraska -- "The Heartland Model for Long-Term Care Reform" -- provides many lessons for Kansas and other states, and is beginning to get the attention of the media:
[I]n recent years, an urban myth has taken hold that the government — Medicaid — pays for our care, no matter how wealthy we are. It's an attitude of entitlement that has numbed vast numbers of people into taking no responsibility for what's going to happen to them when they reach 85 (the fastest growing segment of the American population).
So, most people do nothing until a crisis hits — when it's too late to save or buy long-term care insurance — while many who are well-to-do play games and transfer their assets to family, making themselves eligible for free care under Medicaid.
The outcome? Imagine a speeding train going off a steep cliff. Medicaid budgets everywhere are soaring off the charts, increasing by 7 to 10 percent each year, while the quality of publicly funded care plunges to new depths, with no new taxes in sight. As I've written before, the system is not sustainable. But look out — we haven't even begun to care for 76 million aging boomers.
Every state is in trouble, and each must undo the perverse public policies that created this mess. One state has begun — Nebraska — and a recently published report, "The Heartland Model for Long-Term Care Reform," outlines what needs to be done. It's a fascinating study of the painful, politically and personally difficult, delicate steps that are needed everywhere. Authorized by the Nebraska Legislature and researched and written by Seattle's own Center for Long-Term Care Financing, a national non-profit think tank.
Every state faces Nebraska's dilemma, having allowed citizens to snooze while cruising into old age unprepared. The sooner we start, the less draconian the remedies will be. The Heartland Model gives us direction. The question is: Is anyone listening?
["Forum Speakers Chart a Course for Medicaid Reform in Kansas," Flint Hills Center.
Matthew Hisrich, "Kansas Needs Bold Medicaid Reform," The Wichita Eagle, 21 January 2004.]
[Liz Taylor, "New report offers model for long-term care reform," The Seattle Times, 26 January 2004.]
Flint Hills recently brought Stephen Moses of the Center for Long Term Care Financing in to speak about the situation in Kansas and his recent audit of Medicaid in neighboring Nebraska. His report on Nebraska -- "The Heartland Model for Long-Term Care Reform" -- provides many lessons for Kansas and other states, and is beginning to get the attention of the media:
[I]n recent years, an urban myth has taken hold that the government — Medicaid — pays for our care, no matter how wealthy we are. It's an attitude of entitlement that has numbed vast numbers of people into taking no responsibility for what's going to happen to them when they reach 85 (the fastest growing segment of the American population).
So, most people do nothing until a crisis hits — when it's too late to save or buy long-term care insurance — while many who are well-to-do play games and transfer their assets to family, making themselves eligible for free care under Medicaid.
The outcome? Imagine a speeding train going off a steep cliff. Medicaid budgets everywhere are soaring off the charts, increasing by 7 to 10 percent each year, while the quality of publicly funded care plunges to new depths, with no new taxes in sight. As I've written before, the system is not sustainable. But look out — we haven't even begun to care for 76 million aging boomers.
Every state is in trouble, and each must undo the perverse public policies that created this mess. One state has begun — Nebraska — and a recently published report, "The Heartland Model for Long-Term Care Reform," outlines what needs to be done. It's a fascinating study of the painful, politically and personally difficult, delicate steps that are needed everywhere. Authorized by the Nebraska Legislature and researched and written by Seattle's own Center for Long-Term Care Financing, a national non-profit think tank.
Every state faces Nebraska's dilemma, having allowed citizens to snooze while cruising into old age unprepared. The sooner we start, the less draconian the remedies will be. The Heartland Model gives us direction. The question is: Is anyone listening?
["Forum Speakers Chart a Course for Medicaid Reform in Kansas," Flint Hills Center.
Matthew Hisrich, "Kansas Needs Bold Medicaid Reform," The Wichita Eagle, 21 January 2004.]
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