Tag Archive for: Infrastructure

long-term care infrastructure op-ed in The Hill

America’s long-term care infrastructure: A road to nowhere – Op-ed in the Hill co-authored by Nexus Insights

In a recent op-ed in The Hill, Nexus Insights Fellows Anne Tumlinson, David Grabowski and Robert Kramer, raise an important point that has been missing from recent discussions around transforming long-term care following the pandemic. The Biden Administration has proposed a $400B investment in home- and community-based services (HCBS). We assert this investment is necessary but not sufficient. Without additional spending on services to help families navigate and manage long-term care services, this HCBS investment is basically a “road to nowhere.” We argue for the need to create a network of long-term care service hubs across the country to help families navigate services.

As you know, there have been A LOT of thought pieces around improving long-term care going forward, but we have not seen this point made elsewhere. Thus, we believe it would be an ideal time to make this point as policymakers consider the Biden proposal.

Excerpt:

Long-term care is complex. Few Americans plan ahead and most wait until a crisis pushes them into a frantic search for solutions. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Every day older adults lose their ability to care for themselves. Often, they are discharged from the hospital too weak or confused to be left alone or care for themselves. Now what? Who will take care of them? Is home- or facility-based care the best option? How much will it cost and who will pay? Does Medicare cover it? Does Medicaid? If home care is the answer, how do you find a qualified and affordable caregiver? Where do you even start? Life-changing decisions must be made, and fast.

Read the full op-ed in The Hill.

Anne Tumlinson is CEO of ATI Advisory and the Founder of Daughterhood. David Grabowski is Professor in the Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School. Robert Kramer is the founder of Nexus Insights, and the co-founder and Strategic Advisor & former CEO of the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC).

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Bob Kramer and Anne Tumlinson discuss HCBS

Foresight TV: Bob Kramer & Anne Tumlinson – What Does HCBS Mean For LTC?

With the federal government considering an investment in the country’s infrastructure, a new light has been shed on the importance of infrastructure. And from the resulting discussion, a broader understanding of what is vital infrastructure is emerging. That infrastructure necessarily includes a system of long-term care for the nation’s aging population and a trained workforce to deliver that care.

“We have an outdated, crumbling infrastructure in nursing homes. We have non-existent infrastructure in home and community-based services (HCBS). And we have millions of older adults living longer, many of whom will need services and supports,” said Bob Kramer, Founder and Fellow for Nexus Insights, and Co-Founder and Strategic Advisor for the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC).

Kramer recently interviewed long-term care expert Anne Tumlinson about the importance of long-term care and changes needed in how it’s delivered and how it’s paid for. Tumlinson, the Founder and CEO of ATI Advisory, and Founder of daughterhood.org, offered recommendations for the policy changes needed to make long-term care financially viable for more seniors and their families. Her recommendations also addressed the critical need for a living wage for the shrinking pool of caregivers who work in long-term care, and the important role of HCBS in helping seniors thrive.

“We don’t have a system; instead, every single family has to create their own system, over and over again. What is out there that could help me? How do I find it, set it up, coordinate it? There is currently no system or function in our society to handle that,“ said Tumlinson.

The interview was hosted by Senior Living Foresight. View the entire discussion.

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