Bipartisan legislation was recently introduced to allow eligible Medicare beneficiaries to be cared for at home following a hospital discharge. The Choose Home Care Act of 2021 is seen as an important Medicare policy change that will strengthen and modernize the program by offering beneficiaries a safe, high-quality, post-acute option for nursing-home level services provided in the home.
After an injury or illness causes an individual to be hospitalized, many older adults require continued care and services. The majority prefer to receive this care at home if possible. However, under Medicare, the choice to do so is not always possible. The Choose Home Care Act increases the option to choose home care by supplementing the existing Medicare home health benefit and expanding the services providers can offer at home to hospital-discharge Medicare recipients.
The legislation, introduced by Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Todd Young (R-IN), has been commended by the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) and the Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare (PQHH) and endorsed by the AARP. Original co-sponsors on the bill include Senators Ben Cardin (D-MD), Bob Casey (D-PA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and James Lankford (R-OH).
The Choose Home Care Act if passed would allow eligible Medicare patients (as determined by a carefully controlled assessment tool) to receive expanded skilled and at-home services as an add-on to the existing Medicare Home Health benefit for up to 30 days post discharge. The legislation allows Medicare beneficiaries and home health care providers flexibility and financing to provide robust health care (skilled nursing, therapy, primary care, personal care, continuous remote patient monitoring, meals, home adaptations and non-emergency transportation) to patients from the comfort of their homes and provides a cheaper alternative to services provided by skilled nursing facilities. Commissioned by the PQHH, an analysis by a respected health economics firm shows the model would generate as much as $247 million in savings annually in avoided skilled nursing facility stays for the Medicare program.
“The Choose Home Care Act represents a tremendous step forward for Medicare beneficiaries who would prefer to recover at home but have been previously prevented from doing so under current policy restrictions,” said NAHC President William A. Dombi in a statement. “Given the many benefits of accessing health care and support services at home, as well as the importance of protecting vulnerable patients from COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, this must-pass legislation would go a long way to improve seniors’ health in a safe, cost-effective way. Thanks to the leadership of Senators Stabenow and Young, we are one step closer to achieving that goal.”
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