This country needs to come to grips with long-term care and how to care for the elderly. For now, though, Medicare won't be the way to address the nation's long-term care needs, Markey said. That's really the reason all these home care changes were handed down by the government. They said, 'Look, we're not in the business of long-term care. The future of home care is tied to many tough issues, such as how best to care for the elderly when families are small and scattered geographically.
Family caregivers provide the bulk of home care already.
The advantages of patients recuperating at home must be weighed against the burdens to family caregivers, especially if an elderly spouse is unable to provide proper care, said Ruth L. Jenkins, PhD, RN, associate professor at the Barnes College of Nursing at the University of Missouri-St. New ways to pay Besides new community-based programs, private insurers will continue to cover many home care services, experts say. Critical Care Registered Nursing Services in Stony Brook, N.Y., has succeeded in the home care business since 1985 without ever going through the costly process of Medicare certification, said owner June Julier, RN, a certified adult nurse practitioner. The future looks bright for non-Medicare agencies like hers. Many agencies have left the Medicare business altogether and increased their work with other payer sources instead.