(Alexandria, VA and Washington, DC) – The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) issued the following statement in response to the Senate action on the FY2025 Budget Resolution text.
We are concerned with the magnitude of Medicaid reductions implied by this framework. Though we acknowledge that there have been no final decisions made regarding the programs and policies where these reductions will be achieved, we want to emphasize that Congress must protect access to essential Medicaid funded home and community-based services (HCBS) for eligible individuals. At the same time, we support efforts to improve program integrity to ensure that resources are directed to those who are eligible and require supports. Rather than reducing funding in ways that could limit services, eligibility, and provider payments, we encourage a focused approach that safeguards Medicaid dollars for those it is intended to support.
As the budget reconciliation process moves forward, we strongly encourage Congress to avoid policies that would result in reduced access to the Medicaid program. As it stands now, we don’t believe that the spending reductions outlined in the Resolution are achievable without cuts to care for individuals. Due to how Medicaid is financed, policies that result in a substantial reduction of federal funding to states could limit eligibility, services, and access to care for older adults and people with disabilities. These services are already among the lowest funded healthcare services in the nation.
In addition to strengthening program integrity, there are opportunities to improve services that can also reduce future costs and improve efficiencies. As mentioned in our earlier statement, care in the home is one such proven model. Further, we support efforts to identify bad actors in the system and avoid spending Medicaid resources on fraudulent activities.
The most important thing to remember is, due to the complexity of the state/federal Medicaid partnership, changes can often lead to unintended consequences without careful consideration of all the potential ramifications. For example, reforms that may appear to generate program savings can lead to increased state and federal costs. Additionally, while intent may not be to negatively impact older adults and people with disabilities, cuts in one area of Medicaid can ripple across the entire program, jeopardizing access to HCBS. We strongly caution Congress against pursuing significant changes to Medicaid that could trigger these types of adverse outcomes. As always, we stand ready to provide our expertise to help strengthen Medicaid for all individuals and providers.
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Press Contacts
communications@allianceforcareathome.org
Tom Threlkeld | 202-547-7424
Elyssa Katz | 571-281-0220
About the National Alliance for Care at Home
The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) is a new national organization representing providers of home care, home health, hospice, palliative care, and other health care services mainly delivered in the home. The Alliance brings together two organizations with nearly 90 years of combined experience: NAHC and NHPCO. NAHC and NHPCO have combined operations to better serve members and lead into the future of care offered in the home. Learn more at www.AllianceForCareAtHome.org.
