[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 48 (Thursday, March 19, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E726]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 INTRODUCING A RESOLUTION ON IMPROVING ACCESS TO LONG-TERM CARE IN THE 
                           HOME AND COMMUNITY

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                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 19, 2009

  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce a 
resolution that addresses one of the most crucial health concerns 
facing our nation: expanding access to quality long-term care in the 
home and community.
  Long-term care is a broad range of health and social services that 
are used by people who cannot care for themselves because of a 
physical, cognitive, or mental disability. Eighty percent of long-term 
care now occurs in the home. The majority of long-term care is provided 
by family caregivers that are accompanied by community services such as 
Adult Day Care Programs, home-delivered meals programs, mental health 
services, and home health workers. Sadly, too many patients and 
families are enduring the physical, emotional and financial 
consequences of having poor access to long-term care services.
  Madam Speaker, well over 9.4 million adults receive long-term care in 
the United States of America. And this number is expected to rise. 
Longer life spans among the chronically ill and disabled, and higher 
incidences of acquired disabilities from unmanaged conditions such as 
HIV/AIDS, diabetes, obesity and heart disease will increase our 
reliance on long-term care.
  In little more than two decades, one-fifth of the U.S. population 
will be age sixty-five or older. States with significant elder 
populations--like Florida--know the importance of ensuring that our 
health care system is well equipped to provide decent and routine long-
term care services. However, the increase in demand for long-term care 
services has not been followed by an increased incentive to effectively 
address and solve the disparities in access to high-quality long-term 
care. Amazingly, there has never been a national plan for long-term 
care, and nearly twenty years have passed since Congress 
comprehensively reviewed long-term care policy.
  The lack of streamlined standards and dominant payment methods for 
long-term care has left our long-term care system handicapped: 
depriving countless people of much needed services and placing a 
tremendous financial and emotional burden on families and caregivers. A 
significant portion of long-term care is financed with personal funds, 
and Medicaid is the largest public payer for long-term care. Medicaid 
and out-of-pocket-spending exclude countless persons from receiving 
health care service, which can lead to more costly and invasive medical 
interventions.
  Madam Speaker, this is an important bill that must be supported 
during a critically important time when we are tasked with solving one 
of the most serious financial and health challenges of our era. This 
resolution calls for integrating long-term care into health care reform 
and for making long-term health more affordable.
  The resolution regards preventative health and the management of 
chronic disease as essential components in decreasing the future 
dependence on long-term care by preventing conditions from becoming 
permanently debilitating or disabling. And, it encourages collaboration 
among local, state and federal health care entities to improve working 
conditions and training for home health aides to lower turnover rates, 
staff shortages, patient abuse and raising the standard of care.
  This resolution supports funding for existing technologies, programs 
and intiatives that assist informal care givers, and help maintain and 
improve long-term health services for the disabled and elderly. Lastly, 
it commits to aiding relevant parties in composing, executing, and 
economic disparties that limit access to care.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this 
resolution and to truly invest in the present and future welfare of our 
nation's health care system.

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