State budget continues ongoing work to improve Ohio's long-term care system
Choice and independence remain key goals of workgroup and new subcommittees

For nearly five years, Ohio's Unified Long-term Care System Workgroup has worked to re-engineer our state's long-term care system into one that controls Medicaid spending and is based on choice, not funding streams. The results of their efforts can be seen in Ohio's state budget, as we re-balance long-term services and supports between nursing facility care and home- and community-based services.

House Bill 153 recognized the value of the Unified Long-term Care System Workgroup, and created for fiscal years 2012 and 2013 the Unified Long-term Care System Advisory Workgroup, which will work to implement a unified system of services that:

• Provides consumers choices of long-term care services that meet their health-care needs and improve their quality of life;
• Provides a continuum of long-term care services that meets consumers' needs throughout life and promotes consumers' independence and autonomy; and
• Assures that the state has a system of long-term care services that is cost effective and connects disparate services across agencies and jurisdictions.

In addition to creating the advisory workgroup, the budget bill creates four new subcommittees. One will study the quality measures to be used in the nursing facility quality incentive reimbursement formula. Another subcommittee will study Ohio's nursing facility capacity with a specific charge to examine the ability of nursing facility operators to determine the number of beds to certify for Medicaid participation. Both of these subcommittees must submit reports on their findings by Sept. 1, 2011.

The third subcommittee will study streamlining nursing facility Medicaid eligibility determinations. This report is to be submitted by Dec. 31, 2011. The fourth subcommittee will examine changes to the structure of the nursing facility reimbursement formula, with a report deadline of Dec. 31, 2012.

In addition, HB 153 requires the advisory workgroup to produce a report by June 30, 2012 that discusses unification of the long-term care system, as well as a report due on June 30, 2013 that evaluates that unification design.

In the face of this ambitious agenda, the Advisory Workgroup will produce the short term reports first and will then return to broader improvements to Ohio's system beginning this fall. These broader issues will build upon the recommendations of the Workgroup contained in its two reports issued to date and additional issues raised by current Workgroup members.

The budget bill also creates a legislative unified long-term care systems committee. The focus of the legislative committee appears to be on producing a consolidated Medicaid waiver and movement toward an integrated care delivery system.

Related Links

Unified Long-term Care Systems and Supports

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Aging Connection, published regularly by the Ohio Department of Aging, connects professionals in Ohio’s aging network to information and resources that can help them care for and serve our older citizens. Topics include the latest resources and best pactices within the aging network, state and federal programs and benefits, pending and recent policy and legislation that may impact older Ohioans, the latest research in gerontology and aging issues and more.

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