Home health at the crossroads.
Entire classes of Medicare beneficiaries that previously had been served under the home health benefit are now absent from the care rolls. Anecdotal reports indicate that these beneficiaries are being forced to opt for higher-cost skilled nursing facility or hospital care. Some people are simply going without needed care. Before "expanding" the Medicare benefit into new coverage areas, it only makes good policy and good sense to repair some of the unintended consequences of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA).
Mackin
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VNS of Rochester & Monroe County, Inc., Webster, NY, USA.
Forester
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D000368:Aged; D002017:Budgets / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D014487:Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S.; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends; D006291:Health Policy; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000191:economics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D007326:Institutionalization / Q000191:economics; D006278:Medicare / Q000191:economics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D011057:Politics; D014481:United States