PS Wilson is an entrepreneur from Atlanta, Georgia who knows firsthand what it's like to care for an aging family member. During the early stages of his dementia diagnosis, his late grandmother lived with him, and he said life there was “challenging and rewarding.”
“She then moved to her uncle's home in Washington, D.C., where he had access to additional resources to support her care,” Wilson said, noting that her family is on her father's side. She added that after watching her care for her grandmother, she realized “how difficult it is.” Families without the manpower or resources to care for their loved ones. ”
“This really highlighted the need for accessible, comprehensive care options for all families facing similar challenges,” he said, adding that P.S., now a specialty home health agency, He added that he is the founder of Wilson Healthcare. “I have seen firsthand how the cost of long-term care places a huge burden on families.”
Earlier this month, Vice President Kamala Harris proposed a solution to ease this burden. The move would be the first in the U.S. to expand Medicare benefits to include home health care, as currently Medicare only covers short-term care for rehabilitation.
Harris made the announcement on “The View” on Oct. 8 in a bid to grab the attention of voters who are likely caring for both children and elderly parents. Also known as the “sandwich generation,” it is estimated that approximately one in seven middle-aged adults provide financial support to their aging parents and children. Almost half of adults in their 40s and 50s have a parent over the age of 65, and there is a 70 percent chance that they will need some type of long-term care in the future. It is estimated that 20% of today's 65-year-olds will need long-term care for five years or more.
“There is no guaranteed support system for home care.”
“There are a lot of people in our country who are right in the middle,” Harris told The View. “They're taking care of their children, they're taking care of their elderly parents. It's almost impossible for them to do it all, especially if they're working.”
This predicament causes significant financial strain and emotional stress, and some people may quit their jobs to become full-time caregivers, often reducing their family's income. The average cost of private long-term care (meaning a private room in a nursing home) in 2023 was $116,796 per year. Currently, Medicaid, the program that provides medical and health-related services to low-income people, covers only 1% of total long-term care costs in the United States, in part due to strict income limits and eligibility requirements.
But by providing Medicare, a government health insurance program for adults 65 and older, that covers more of these costs, millions of seniors can ease the burden of long-term care. This could potentially reduce the risk and allow for more medical care to be provided. The option of receiving care at home. Notably, Harris suggested that recent Medicare drug cost reductions negotiated by the Biden administration would cover the cost of this proposal.
Many who have watched the long-term care crisis unfold were happy to hear that Harris will prioritize it during this campaign.
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Nicole Jolwick, director of advocacy and campaigns for Caring Across Generations, said the reality is that Americans rely on unpaid family caregivers to care for the elderly and disabled.
“We don't have any guaranteed support system for home care,” Jorvich told Salon. “So what that means is either relying on unpaid family caregivers or spending every last penny to get the care you need.”
Expanding Medicare to cover home health care would “absolutely” help ease the financial burden, he added. Costs vary by state, but can cost anywhere from $30 to $40 per hour for home care and $325 per day for live-in care. Some people have to pay more than $100,000 a year out of pocket for home care.
“Adding 20 hours or whatever time people need in terms of home care would relieve a tremendous amount of burden on families,” Yorwich said. “Family caregivers provide trillions of dollars of unpaid care to the economy.”
AARP recently urged members of Congress to provide paid family leave for those who care for older adults and expand access to “family caregiver assistance and respite services,” as well as to increase access to “family caregiver assistance and respite services.” He called for the expansion of services to help people live at home, even if they are unable to do so.
“Family caregivers are the backbone of our broken long-term care system, providing $600 billion in unpaid labor each year and saving taxpayers billions of dollars,” AARP Executive Vice President Nancy Leamond said in a media statement. ” “It is long past time for lawmakers to enact common-sense solutions that support family caregivers and help older Americans live independently in the homes they want.”
While some people support this proposal, others are a little more skeptical. Cliff Porter, president and CEO of the American Healthcare Association/National Center for Assisted Living, said in an email statement to Salon that the organization is making long-term care more affordable and accessible to everyone. He said he was “supportive” of finding the right person. But the most important aspect is investing in health workers.
“The growing caregiver shortage is an urgent crisis for our nation's seniors,” Porter said. “Without adequate resources and policies to help develop more nurses, nursing assistants, CNAs (Certified Nursing Assistants) and other caregivers, they will not be able to meet the demands of our aging nation. No matter what you need in such an environment, you can't respond to that kind of care. ”
“With our elderly population growing rapidly, we cannot afford to miss a moment,” he added.
Djorwicz said Harris would have to pass such an expansion if she wins the presidential election, but she hopes it will be a bipartisan issue.
“I think there is a recognition that care is something that everyone has in common,” she said. “This is a multi-generational crisis that needs to be addressed for economic reasons but also for people to age with dignity.”
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