AAHSA Statement on Senate Finance Committee's Health R...( WASHINGTON Sept. 16...),Health

WASHINGTON, Sept. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- We commend the Senate Finance Committee for the work they have put into developing an equitable and affordable approach to making health care coverage accessible to the millions of Americans who do not now have it.

We especially appreciate the committee's preservation of Medicare resources for long-term services and supports (translation -- SNF and home health market basket update for 2010 remains whole). We are also pleased to see the inclusion of provisions for which we have long worked to gain a proper accounting under Medicare for the resources nursing homes commit to nurse staffing. We also look forward to working with the committee on the improvements of care delivery for seniors who must navigate the acute care/post acute nursing home and home care systems over the next several years.

We understand that the Finance Committee did not have jurisdiction over the CLASS (Community Living Assistance Services and Supports) provisions included in the measure approved by the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, but we urge the Senate leadership to ensure that the CLASS provisions are preserved in the "zippered" health care reform measure that will be taken up on the Senate floor.

About AAHSA

The members of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (www.aahsa.org) help millions of individuals and their families every day through mission-driven, not-for-profit organizations dedicated to providing the services that people need, when they need them, in the place they call home. Our 5,800 member organizations, many of which have served their communities for generations, offer the continuum of aging services: adult day services, home health, community servi
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