“Why Nursing Homes Are Pandemic Hotbeds (Guest: Stephen Moses),” by AnneMarie Schieber, Heartland Podcast

 

Quote:

“Rich or poor, nearly 60 percent of care in nursing homes is paid by taxpayers under Medicaid. This has led to crowded, poorly staff situations that made it easy for an invisible virus to run like wildfire. Stephen Moses describes how Medicaid has exceeded its mission in paying for long term care for the medically needy or those with little to no income and now pays for care for nearly anyone. This giveaway has been a disincentive for people to save for long term care. Moses discusses whether it is accurate and fair to describe nursing home care as substandard, how many seniors live in nursing homes, the percentage who are covered by Medicaid, how this percentage has grown over the decades, how much Medicaid pays for care, what should it reasonably cost, why families choose Medicaid to pay for care when are aware it does not necessarily by the best care, what the market place is like for private long-term care, the difficulties in purchasing long term care insurance, and what the solutions are.  He explains why better oversight, increasing Medicaid reimbursement and more home care are not solutions to preventing another crisis from a pandemic.”

LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform):

I hope my cackly, old-man voice at least makes me sound oracular.