Seniors suffer-Healthcare Reform

Mary is a frail little 90 year old lady she has bright blue eyes, she sits most days in a small room with a bed and a window. Her wheelchair is pushed to the dining room where she is fed lunch. She lives in a long term care facility. She is dependent on the nursing staff to feed her, bathe her, toilet her, and help her dress herself daily. She becomes easily confused and at times yells loudly and cries for her mother. Mary worked for 30 years as a grocery clerk, and she is widowed. Mary paid social security wages and taxes her entire life. When she was unable to care for herself and had no children to care for her, she was sent to a nursing facility for her care. Mary’s bank account is gone, her cost for care is 200 dollars per day. Her home has been sold, and now the state Medicaid covers the bill for her 70,000 dollars per year care. This is just one example of 10 million patients just like Mary. Mary has worked long and hard, and we all would agree she deserves to have coverage and care in her old age which she has paid for all her life. What are we doing about the fact that this rate of coverage is not sustainable. It will definitely not be available for baby boomers. A solution is needed. What will it be?

Since Obama’s rant in the Rose Garden on April 2, all has been fairly quiet concerning healthcare reform. Most Americans have the  feeling that the individual mandate will be repealed. Both Democrats and Republicans alike have negative feelings toward the huge bill. Not only does it end up costing the national debt  $341 billion dollars, but it is going to penalize individuals who do not have coverage by 2014. Additionally 88 million people will loose their current doctors and will be told who they can see for medical care.

A crisis exists in our senior population as we discussed. Currently there are 10 million Americans in long term care and the projected number who will need  long term care will hit 15 million by 2020. In all this mess, there is one group of people who will suffer more than any other..seniors.

The OBAMACARE answer? CLASS ACT

According to the long term care provision which is neatly tucked into the reform, the CLASS act asserts that individuals will begin paying a premium immediately and, after five years, those with functional limitations have the option of receiving a cash benefit of around $50 a day that can be used to offset the cost of long-term care services. Fifty dollars per day barely covers food expense, these patients have complex medical issues such as life support and dialysis. This particular program has drawn divisive lines between Republicans and Democrats. The bill was originally sponsored by Rep. Charles Boustany, (R) La. who concluded afterwards, that the bill was flawed and would not work, unless it was terminated, because the costs were absolutely unsustainable.Of course Democrats are citing that the solution is to amend this program, not repeal it.

This hastily thrown together plan wil definitely not come close to meeting the needs of this patient population, and if left in its current form within the legislation, stands to do much more harm than good. According to House Speaker John Boehner (R) Ohio, this CLASS act will definitely be de-funded. The House voted to repeal unanamously however the Senate has totally ignored the vote for the past year. This is just one huge problem that lies within the huge healthcare reform bill. One that will take careful planning and consideration to find a solution for seniors. Meanwhile the Washington set is busy spending away on fancy vacations, trips to Vegas, parties in Columbia and making the White House look like a circus. The new slogan for 2012 should be, stop blowing taxpayer money, settle down and delve into the serious serious issues that face this nation, Repeal and repair.

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