Kamala Harris Will Propose Adding Home Care Benefit To Medicare
Source: HuffPo
Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris on Tuesday will propose a major new initiative: expanding Medicare to cover the cost of long-term care at home.
Such a plan could mean the option of staying at home, rather than in a nursing facility, for the millions of seniors and people with disabilities who need help with the daily tasks of life.
It could also mean physical and financial relief ― and new opportunities for school or work outside the home ― for the millions of working-age Americans who today provide so much of that care on their own without much in the way of outside assistance.
If the proposed legislation is enacted, such a program would represent a substantial boost in federal support for caregiving and, by any measure, one of the largest one-time increases in American history.
Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/kamala-harris-medicare-home-care_n_6704a28ce4b0b12bd23f785f
She will be making the announcement today on The View. This would be huge for a lot of folks!
Walleye
(35,658 posts)PunkinPi
(5,003 posts)Walleye
(35,658 posts)I know it must be very exhausting and emotionally draining. We definitely need to help people who are taking care of the sick and elderly.
PunkinPi
(5,003 posts)littlemissmartypants
(25,483 posts)PunkinPi
(5,003 posts)littlemissmartypants
(25,483 posts)moonscape
(5,363 posts)had Alzheimers. She lived with me and I did it on my own. Thankfully she was an amazing woman and our bond was strong, but tough even so with little relief. Friends would take her for a few hours here and there, for which I was grateful.
PunkinPi
(5,003 posts)Deminpenn
(16,303 posts)in PA. The state recently passed legislation mandating more staff in skilled nursing facilities which has those facilities howling about cost. Private assisted living places only keep residents until the residents run out of money, then they are shucked off the nursing homes. That just means there are fewer places for those who can't be cared for at home to go.
You can actually deduct a lot of expenses when you do your federal taxes and there medicare will pay for hospice care, but Harris' proposal will certainly fullfill a need and an increasing desire for people to stay in their homes.
mucifer
(24,828 posts)hours a week and maybe a home health aid for an hour 1-3 times a week for bathing. So lots of hospice care is in nursing homes.
RainCaster
(11,543 posts)That's the specialized end-of-life care that often involves heavyweight pain killers. The people who do this work are truly special.
The idea of everyday care for seniors is great, and long overdue. She's been paying attention to the right people..
littlemissmartypants
(25,483 posts)With wages going up workers have more options. They can just move on. Because no one wants to work for slave wages, in an understaffed facility. I certainly don't blame them.
It's an outstanding opportunity for so many if she pulls it off and I hope that she does.
❤️
mysteryowl
(7,752 posts)Our grandmother was in a long term care facility and it cost $9000 a month!!!
Home care would have been so much better and less expensive.
Shermann
(8,636 posts)mysteryowl
(7,752 posts)MichMan
(13,160 posts)If someone just needs a care giver be present for a couple hours a day, sure it would.
$9000 per month equates to $300 per day. Look at what current at home care now costs per hour and it wouldn't take much to get there.
I can't imagine that people that need someone caring for them around the clock could all have someone living in their house with them 24/7.
LisaM
(28,594 posts)My mother is 88. She lives at home by herself. She's mentally fine, but has mobility issues and has had several falls. She has what we call "helpers", and they have all been great, but the bulk of the responsibility falls on my sister who is the only family member who lives in state (an hour away) and has to constantly drive back and forth, handle bills, cable TV issues, phone, etc. I will be making my third cross country trip since May because we will all be taking a road trip and my sister can't (and shouldn't have to) do it alone, but it's difficult.
And our situation is not all that bad. I wish there was some sort of (decently paid) kind of model where there could be a network of caregivers who fell somewhere between family and medical - people who can fix meals, help liase with cable companies or drug stores, make sure the lawn is mowed, laundry is done, and so on.
What we need is a network of people who can do these tasks, who can make a living at it, who are good at it, and - importantly - enjoy the job and have enough backup that there is low stress.
Trueblue Texan
(2,922 posts)Joinfortmill
(16,382 posts)Native
(6,550 posts)Native
(6,550 posts)Vinca
(51,030 posts)As an aging person, I believe private industry considers older people are a profit center.
cstanleytech
(26,993 posts)moonscape
(5,363 posts)lady living on SS with savings I will easily outlive. Then what? Im not the only terrified Senior without kids. I cared for my mom with alzheimers and manage the affairs of a childhood friend who got dementia from brain surgery. She lives on SS and has no $$ to pay for help so I do everything. Unfortunately, when my time comes to need help, I wont have a me. And that day is not far off as Im losing my vision to macular degeneration, have cancer, and struggle with arthritis.
I live in an area on the Central CA coast which is expensive with an aging population. Such an important issue.
Opening the door for Medicare assistance addresses the greatest fear that keeps me up at night, right after a repeat of 2016.
valleyrogue
(1,098 posts)need the help rather than wealthy families who can afford to have one adult stay and care for aging parents/relatives. Once again, I see too much pandering to upper income households at the expense of the rest of us.
This isn't the 1950s anymore. The demographics have radically changed. Never-married women over 65 are the most likely to live in poverty, yet politicians, even Harris, pretend as if they do not exist.
It is a crisis, just as renting is a crisis, yet we have Democrats talking about giving even MORE benefits for people who can afford to buy houses rather than help those who really need assistance, like renters.
PuppyBismark
(607 posts)Ive had three friends who had parents who needed it. It is very expensive but needed. One friends wife had brain cancer and needed constant nursing care the last three weeks of her life. It cost him a fortune.
Please do it for those who need it!
spooky3
(36,194 posts)MichMan
(13,160 posts)Trueblue Texan
(2,922 posts)...but they have to quit jobs to do it, cutting household income and increasing the burden on the individual. This was an emergency situation DECADES ago! It's about time we did something to provide relief to these families who must step into a caregiving role.
MichMan
(13,160 posts)If you compensate family members $20 per hour and they are there 24 hrs a day living in the household, that would equate to $480 per day (not even considering overtime pay)
$175,000 per year in wages for one care giver
Trueblue Texan
(2,922 posts)More likely it will be either like the child tax credit or a monthly stipend of some sort. But anything is better than nothing, which is what family caregivers now get.
Voltaire2
(14,701 posts)Voltaire2
(14,701 posts)markie
(22,920 posts)a great benefit for many.... I retired early to be a caregiver and this plan would have made a substantial difference in my life
Trueblue Texan
(2,922 posts)This is so needed! It's probably not something you hear about often, but it is a silent, relentless burden on America's families. It exhausts family caregivers financially, physically, and emotionally. So many who end up being caregivers for their loved ones must end their careers to take care of their loved ones, losing much needed income and social support. I've seen situations become desperate for families with NO hope for relief. Caregivers develop depression and related illness, making their task even harder. I pray this goes somewhere.
onetexan
(13,896 posts)And working for the middle class! This one knocks it out of the ballpark!
Bravo President Harris!!! 🌊🇺🇸
👍👏🌊🇺🇸
travelingthrulife
(685 posts)dflprincess
(28,468 posts)recovering_democrat
(283 posts)during original "covid" situation my husband was in nursing home with serious alzheimers problem. We visited him almost daily before the covid problem eliminated visitors of any type because he didn't know who we were by that time. Over time, became clear, the nursing home was abusing the types of services and costs, and generally would not approve his rights to stop being given life-continuing actions which was his wish and content in his living will. The nursing home was making a fortune by this situation. I went to live there, we got him placed in home health care with me or my son staying with him 24-7 and periodic nursing visits and other fabulous help. This is an honorable way to help your loved ones without outrageous behaviors when you cant get the accurate help you need. Take it from a personal experience: be sure you and your family know in writing what you want, and make sure it is carried out. For those without financial means to take this for personal circumstances, THIS is the absolute wonderful choice. And keep in in mind: regardless of your personal opinion: it IS YOUR CHOICE>
I had to pay $6000 out of pocket for home care last year. If Medicare covers this, then they should put regulations on the home care industry.
Greybnk48
(10,391 posts)at the age where we face either a nursing home, or no consistent care at all.
I will not go to assisted living or a nursing home, and my husband doesn't want to either. Granted, we will have to if we have a debilitating event that cannot be handled at home. But, that said, good one's are not readily available really anywhere. There are some, but most are grossly understaffed. We went through a horrid experience 2 years ago, and I would not trust but one in our area. I think I would rather croak either alone or with a family member, than be neglected and ignored by a stranger who is overwhelmed by the workload. This would radically change things!
Harriet Harlow
(1 post)That's wonderful news! Seniors would benefit so much from this!
returnee
(280 posts)dental too?
4catsmom
(227 posts)but the crafters of Medicare were mostly men and what did they know about home care?
Hekate
(94,623 posts)And the GOP has been trying to starve it and kill it ever since.
Thank God for Dems who keep working to keep it alive, thru bad times and good.
calimary
(84,306 posts)Just one more good reason why shes GOTTA win!