Washington, DC – The American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL) today praised U.S. Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-ND) and U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) for including a provision in the Senate FY 2009 Budget Resolution (S. Con. Res. 70) that highlights long term care as an important priority. Specifically, the provision added by Chairman Conrad calls for a health care reserve fund that would maximize Medicaid spending flexibility, which Senator Cardin expressly requested be used, in part, to enhance care quality for the nation’s most vulnerable seniors. This provision also would help to protect Medicaid beneficiaries and states from the harmful impact of seven pending Medicaid regulations issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
“AHCA/NCAL commends Senators Conrad and Cardin for their efforts to spotlight long term care, and better ensure that our nation’s most vulnerable seniors retain access to quality care and services,” stated AHCA/NCAL President and CEO Bruce Yarwood. “We also oppose efforts to amend the Senate budget resolution by restricting the use of the reserve fund as recommended by Senators Conrad and Cardin, and believe that Congress should block Medicaid ‘reforms’ that impede spending flexibility in a manner harmful to beneficiaries.”
Yarwood noted that AHCA/NCAL shares the concern of many in Congress and in communities across the country that CMS’ regulatory initiative will reduce federal Medicaid funds not through greater efficiency, but through unilateral actions that were neither directed nor authorized by Congress. “Especially as the nation’s Governors are facing more challenging economic conditions, we worry that these regulations will limit seniors’ ability to access key Medicaid programs – and that the loss of federal funds will shift costs to the states, thereby disrupting existing systems of care for fragile populations.”
As debate over the seven Medicaid regulations issued by CMS continues, the AHCA/NCAL President reiterated several principles that the long term care profession has repeatedly outlined in regard to ongoing Medicaid reform efforts:
- The loss of intergovernmental transfer (IGT) funds will have a significant negative impact on states that will need to scramble to replace funds committed to long term care;
- Finding future budget savings should not come at the expense of today’s quality long term care provided for economically disadvantaged, frail seniors;
- Especially in more challenging economic times, states require supplementary Medicaid funding to meet the needs of their most vulnerable citizens. States have turned to programs such as IGTs to access these much-needed Medicaid dollars.
Yarwood commented, “Instead of focusing on the problems with legal mechanisms like IGTs, we should focus on why these dollars are needed.” The AHCA/NCAL President added that the long term care profession has advanced a plan designed to help federal and state lawmakers seize control of eldercare financing issues, while offering welcome support to the nation’s Governors by dramatically restructuring the Medicaid program, which currently finances the lion’s share of long term care in America.
The 
Long Term and Post-Acute Care Financing Reform Proposal would reorganize the Medicaid long term care and Medicare post-acute care systems by centralizing and streamlining government services, and making more private resources available to pay for care that would benefit consumers, providers, and taxpayers alike.
The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL) represent nearly 11,000 non-profit and proprietary facilities dedicated to continuous improvement in the delivery of professional and compassionate care provided daily by millions of caring employees to 1.5 million of our nation's frail, elderly and disabled citizens who live in nursing facilities, assisted living residences, subacute centers and homes for persons with mental retardation and developmental disabilities. For more information, please visit www.ahca.org or www.ncal.org.