HOME CARE OPTION FOR OLDER ADULTS WITH CHRONIC LIMITATIONS: AN EVALUATION OF PASSPORT (LONG-TERM CARE, MEDICAID WAIVER, NURSING HOME, OHIO).
Contributors: Ohio State University.
Published: 1986
Number of pages: 360
Subjects: Social Work.
Description: The major purpose of this study is to provide information about the importance of home care in the long-term care system and to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the PASSPORT Home Care Program in Ohio. PASSPORT is a demonstration project funded under Section 2176 of P.L. 97-35 which waives certain Medicaid requirements for home care services.

A quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design was used to compare what had happened under PASSPORT with what would have happened in its absence. 103 home care clients formed the experimental (HC) group and 136 nursing home clients formed the control (NH) group. All subjects were 65+, needed ICF level of care, resided in Central Ohio, and were assessed by PASSPORT during its first year of implementation. The pre-test data included a 6-month Medicaid history and an initial assessment of physical functioning. The post-test data were collected from three 6-month re-assessments. Four hypotheses were tested in terms of physical functioning, utilization of physician services, hospitalization, and overall Medicaid service costs.

Both the HC and the NH groups served mostly 75+, female, unmarried, and chronically-limited persons. The results from multivariate analyses showed that both the HC and the NH programs assisted the clients in maintaining physical functioning with adequate physician care. However, mortality rate was lower in the HC group than in the NH group. Also, the HC clients received a wider range of services, tended to use less hospital services six months after enrollment, and had lower costs than the NH clients. The Medicaid service costs for the HC group were about 57% of those costs for the NH group. Services for the HC clients included regular Medicaid services and home health services assisting independent living. The results showed that the home care option is a cost-effective option for long-term care. To expand this option, a Medicaid-supported long-term care system with a central assessment unit is recommended to be developed in Ohio.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-07, Section: A, page: 2738.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, 1986.

School code: 0168.