Share:
House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2013 - 2014
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | February 22, 2013 12:19 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Jim Cox |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Family Caregiver & Waiver Program Study by Legislative Budget and Finance Committee |
| In the near future, I will be introducing a resolution that will call upon the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to conduct a thorough review of Pennsylvania’s Medicaid Home and Community Based Waiver Programs in order to determine the extent to which family members serve as caregivers in those programs and to identify barriers that exist which preclude family caregiving. Some of you may recall receiving correspondence from one of my constituents, Mr. Kerry DeTemple regarding his experiences with some of the MA Waiver Programs. Unfortunately, Mr. DeTemple’s continuous requests to allow his wife (his primary caregiver) to serve as his “waiver” caregiver were repeatedly denied. Tragically, the DeTemple’s dissolved their marriage in order for Mrs. DeTemple to be eligible to provide Waiver service caregiving. I found this experience with Pennsylvania’s Waiver Programs to be inexcusable and unacceptable. National studies have shown that people who have family caregivers tend to have fewer hospital admissions, shorter hospital stays, and informal care by adult children reduces Medicare inpatient expenditures of single older adults, as well as expenditures for home health and skilled nursing facility care. Please join me in co-sponsoring this resolution. |
Introduced as HR241