“During his annual State of the Union Address, the American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living urge President Bush to highlight the critical issue of long term care and the need for reform in order to ensure continued high quality care and services for our frail, elderly and disabled Americans. This is a rare opportunity for the President to raise awareness and exhibit leadership on an issue that directly impacts the lives and care for our parents and grandparents today, but also for the Baby Boomer generation who will require such long term care services in the not too distant future.”
“In addition to comprehensive reform, it is incumbent upon policy leaders to take actions now to address the economic downturn which impacts all aspects of our society, including long term care providers. Therefore, in making a final decision regarding the key components of the pending economic stimulus package, we respectfully urge the Administration to heed a growing number of leading Republican and Democratic Governors and Members of Congress who, like us, believe that a temporary increase in states’ federal Medical assistance percentage (FMAP) would serve as a needed insurance policy to protect vulnerable seniors’ care as states brace for an economic downturn.”
The American Health Care Association represents 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.