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The Kaiser Family Foundation helped conduct a national survey of over 1,000 informal caregivers in 1998 to assess the policy issues involved with this new, growing role for many family members and friends. Nearly one of every four adults (23 percent) is an informal caregiver, and, as the American population ages, it is likely families will take on an even greater responsibility to keep their loved ones at home and in communities. The Foundation is…
This policy brief describes the current federal staffing requirements and how states separately regulate staffing levels in nursing homes. It also presents data showing actual staffing levels in over half of this country's nursing homes exceed the levels that states and the federal government require. Report PDF Download
This policy brief describes the resources, staffing, and performance of state licensing and certification agencies based on findings from a survey of state survey agency officials. Issue Paper
This report provides an overview of the Arizona Medicaid experience and contains valuable insights into the evolution and experience of a mandatory statewide Medicaid managed care program covering both acute care and long-term care services. Note: This publication is no longer in circulation. However, a copy may still exist in the Foundation's internal library that could be reproduced. Please email order@kff.org if you would like to pursue this option.
Regulation of Private Long-Term Care Insurance: Implementation Experience and Key Issues While private long-term care insurance (LTCI) has been available since the mid-1970s, its popularity has grown rapidly in recent years, and Congress is considering proposals that would further encourage LTCI purchase through expanded tax subsidies. Yet there has been little research on how well LTCI works and how much security it really provides. This report focuses on consumer protections for individuals buying LTCI in…
Medicare is a critical source of health insurance coverage for virtually all older women in the U.S. and for many younger women who have permanent disabilities. Today, 22 million women one in five adult women rely on Medicare for basic health insurance protection. In fact, women comprise 57% of the Medicare population. Medicare helps to make health care more affordable for older women at a time in their lives when they are most likely to…
The health reform law contains provisions that aim to improve the delivery and coordination of services for persons enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare, known as the dual eligibles. This population includes individuals with some of the most severely disabling chronic conditions. While the higher costs associated with services to dual eligibles is well-known, information on how spending is distributed across these programs is less understood. This study uses linked Medicare and Medicaid data to…
This brief reports on a case study of Georgia's Money Follows the Person (MFP) demonstration program, describing key features of the program and highlighting recent program experiences. The Georgia Department of Community Health (DCH) implemented the program in September 2008. In 2005, before the demonstration began, Georgia’s long-term care expenditures were $1.5 billion, with 70 percent devoted to institutional long-term care and 30 percent on home and community-based services (HCBS). One goal of the demonstration…
With recent policy debates about the future of Medicaid, the Foundation's Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured has created a resource page of recent publications that address key policy issues when examining Medicaid's role for high cost populations and in long-term care. Of particular interest are a report profiling six Medicaid populations with serious health needs resulting in high costs for the program and a recent analysis showing more than half (52%) of Medicaid…
Long-Term Care: Medicaid's Role and Challenges This Policy Brief examines Medicaid's role in providing long-term care services. It describes long-term care services, the population that needs these services, and how people get long-term care services. It provides an overview of health insurance coverage of persons with long-term care needs and describes both Medicare's and Medicaid's role in providing these services. It also examines some of the policy issues and challenges involved in providing long-term care…
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