Medicare at Home

In a new plan called “Medicare at Home,” Vice President Harris proposed expanding Medicare to cover in-home senior care — aiming to help the “sandwich generation” of adults caring for aging parents while raising their children at the same time.

Harris wants Medicare to cover long-term care, including in-home aides.

“Medicare will cover home care for the first time ever for all of our nation’s seniors and those with disabilities on Medicare who need it, in addition to vision and hearing benefits to help seniors live independently for longer,” the plan says.

Read her fact sheet.

“Today’s announcement is truly exciting and unique,” Katie Smith Sloan, president and CEO at LeadingAge, told McKnights Long-Term Care News in a statement. “Adding home care to the Medicare program, a much needed component of a broader long-term care financing reform effort, will offer millions of older adults and families access to services that promote quality of life and safety as people age at home. At the same time, we cannot overstate that without staff, there is no care. Continued attention and investment in the workforce…remains essential.”