Do noninstitutional long-term care services reduce Medicaid spending?
Medicaid spending on home and community-based services (HCBS) has grown dramatically in recent years, but little is known about what effect these alternatives to institutional services have on overall long-term care costs. An analysis of state spending data from 1995 to 2005 shows that for two distinct population groups receiving long-term care services, spending growth was greater for states offering limited noninstitutional services than for states with large, well-established noninstitutional programs. Expansion of HCBS appears to entail a short-term increase in spending, followed by a reduction in institutional spending and long-term cost savings.
Kaye
H Stephen
HS
Institute for Health and Aging at University of California, San Francisco, USA. steve.kaye@ucsf.edu
LaPlante
Mitchell P
MP
Harrington
Charlene
C
D003153:Community Health Services / Q000191:economics*; D017046:Cost Savings; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000191:economics*; D006801:Humans; D008134:Long-Term Care / Q000191:economics; D008484:Medicaid / Q000191:economics*; D014481:United States