“Higher acuity, assisted living behind nursing home Medicare spending growth, experts say,” by Marty Stempniak, McKnight’s LTC News

“Increased acuity and investment in dual eligibles at the state level have resulted in long-stay nursing home residents driving Medicare spending growth, according to a new analysis published this week in Health Affairs. … Pouring over beneficiary data from 2007 to 2015, investigators found that — regardless of Medicaid participation or age — beneficiaries with long-term (three months or longer) nursing home use had some of the highest spending growth rates. Those averaged between 1.7 and 4.1%, they found.”

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

LTC impacts Medicare expenditures dramatically, especially for dual eligibles. The only way to reduce that fiscal exposure is to get people to plan for LTC long before they become ill. At that point, they face the choice of paying privately for care or going to a nursing home on Medicaid. That choice is too tempting especially for heirs who are likely to be making the decisions by then.

Higher acuity, assisted living behind nursing home Medicare spending growth, experts say

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