[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 103 (Thursday, July 18, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1089]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT FOR H.R. ___, THE LONG TERM CARE VETERANS CHOICE 
                                  ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JEFF MILLER

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 18, 2013

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, today, I am introducing H.R. ___, 
the Long Term Care Veterans Choice Act, to amend title 38, United 
States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to enter 
into contracts and agreements for the transfer of veterans to non-
Department medical foster homes for certain veterans who are unable to 
live independently.
  Medical foster homes are private homes in which a trained caregiver 
provides twenty-four-hour, around-the-clock, care to a few individuals.
  They are designed to provide a non-institutional long-term care 
alternative to those who prefer a smaller, more home-like and familial 
care setting than many traditional nursing homes are able to provide.
  The Department of Veterans Affairs, VA, has been helping to place 
veterans in medical foster homes for over a decade.
  VA, as part of the placement process, inspects and approves all 
medical foster homes, limits care to no more than three veterans at a 
time, and provides veterans living in such homes with home-based 
primary care services.
  VA also provides safeguards to ensure veterans receive safe, high-
quality care by requiring medical foster home caregivers to pass a 
federal background check and VA screening, agree to undergo annual 
training, and allow VA medical foster home coordinators and members of 
a VA home care team to make both announced and unannounced home visits.
  Today, according to VA, over four hundred approved caregivers provide 
medical foster home care in their homes to over five hundred veterans 
daily in over thirty five states.
  The problem, however, is that VA does not have the authority to pay 
for the cost of the medical foster home.
  So, the veteran who chooses to live in a medical foster home must pay 
out of pocket with personal funds--regardless of whether or not such 
veteran is eligible for VA-paid nursing home care.
  This creates a situation where many service-connected veterans with 
limited financial resources, who would prefer to live in a medical 
foster home, go to a nursing home institution instead because VA will 
cover the cost of the nursing home, but not the medical foster home.
  And, while traditional nursing homes will always be a vital component 
of long-term care, medical foster homes provide a worthy alternative 
for many veterans.
  According to the Department, many more veterans would elect to 
receive care in a medical foster home should VA be granted the 
authority to pay for such care.
  As the veteran population continues to age, the need for long-term 
care services will continue to grow.
  I am sure we all agree that one thing we owe our veterans, 
particularly those who are service-connected and in need of long-term 
care, is the luxury of choice--the choice to decide where and how to 
receive the care they need.
  The Long-Term Care Veterans Choice Act which would authorize VA to 
enter into a contract or agreement with a certified medical foster home 
to pay for the residential long-term care of service-connected veterans 
who are eligible for VA-paid nursing home care and would expand the 
long-term care choices offered to veterans beyond traditional services.
  In addition to being beneficial for the health and well-being of 
veterans, the average cost of a medical foster home is approximately 
half the monthly cost of a nursing home, making this legislation a very 
cost effective health care option.
  This is a commonsense, veteran-centric bill that will free many 
veterans from financial turmoil, and allow them to make their own 
decisions about what kind of long-term care they want to receive.
  I strongly encourage my colleagues to join me in co-sponsoring the 
Long Term Care Veterans Choice Act.

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