Topic Overview (Week 3 Perusall Link Written Assignment)
For the first time ever, billions of federal relief funds are available for states and community service providers to expand, enhance, and strengthen the programs that keep our elderly loved ones safe, engaged, and healthy. From $1.5 billion in additional support in the Older Americans Act to a 10% Medicaid enhanced match in the American Rescue Plan, this is an unprecedented time for states to take advantage of federal programs to serve more people in the community.
These funds offer a triple win: top preference, strong outcomes, and fiscal soundness. They include support for nutrition, family caregivers, aging and disability services, infection control, and more. And additional funding is expected to come later this summer with the American Jobs Plan legislation.
The biggest opportunity area is more at-home support for seniors.
Throughout 2020, people who usually would be candidates for assisted living or nursing home care were unable to move in due to coronavirus lockdowns. So, they stayed in their homes with help from caregivers – children, friends, spouses, or paid home health workers.
The result for many seniors was excellent. They remained in a place they knew, in routines they preferred, where exposure was reduced. Most seniors are happier at home, and aging at home reduces the demand on tax-financed facility-based programs. Those programs then have funds to provide more home-based aid to seniors – some as simple and impactful as free installation of grab bars or ramps to prevent falls, or meal delivery services to reduce the effects of social isolation.
For example, during quarantine, we learned again how important certain services were for breaking through social isolation. Even pre-pandemic, four of every 10 elderly people receiving home delivery services for meals said the food drop-off was their primary social contact of the day.
Services such as Meals on Wheels provide much more than nutrition. They also enable regular check-ins that could be lifesaving in the case of abuse or neglect, among other things, and allow people to feel connected and noticed. This lifeline became even more vital amid coronavirus shutdowns. Demand for meal services, as an example, doubled in many places like New York.
Have we historically been too quick to move some seniors into nursing homes? Community-based programs, such as meal-delivery services, produce results that far exceed the bottom line, particularly during a crisis. The pandemic prompted a long-overdue return to supporting our elders with these services and a sensible cry to keep them safe in their home.
On a government and state level, community-based programs should be a central part of eldercare going forward. They are shining examples of how well a care system can work when it is integrated and centered on keeping people safe in the community while honoring their preferences.
The appetite of our nation for consumer involvement has never been more supportive and we need to deliver on its promise with options like buy-in programs, by screening and diverting where we can, and by expanding information systems so Americans have greater awareness of community programs and services.
For this assignment:
Using the Perusall link provided below, watch the video: Caring After Covid – The Future of Elderly Health Care (YouTube, 2020) . https://perusall.com/
Perusall Link access information
Email: jr3486@mynsu.nova.edu
Password: jrde3486
Within the Perusall tool, highlight and comment on:
Two areas that resonated with you regarding the importance of this week’s readings while reflecting on the potential impact that additional federal funds for Medicaid Home Care Based Services would or could have in these situations. As countries rethink how they care for their elderly, reflect on these innovative solutions and how you may handle such situations should they present.
All comments are to be made directly by highlighting and adding the comment in the Perusall application link. Within this link you will be able to view your classmates findings. If the area you are choosing to highlight has already been highlighted by a classmate, this is acceptable and is completed by adding your findings as a reply to continue the threaded discussion of this select area of the article. If you are unsure of how to comment on the article, review the instructions page.
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