Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Releases 2012 MCBS Access to Care Research Files: Are Medicare Beneficiaries Getting the Help They Need with Home‐Based Care?
Americans are living longer with significant cognitive and physical disabilities, and the number of Americans needing long term care will more than double by 2050. Yet, there is a growing shortage of caregivers, and most Americans who need long term care receive it from unpaid family caregivers. The estimated value of this unpaid work is $375 billion a year.
To mitigate these trends, there is a growing focus on home‐based care to meet the needs of the elderly, including several initiatives in the Affordable Care Act aimed at increasing home‐based care as a cost‐saving measure that may also lead to improved health care quality. In addition, there are calls to increase training and support provided to family caregivers, as older adults who return home from a hospital event without needed assistance with an activity of daily living (ADL) have higher rates of rehospitalization.
With almost 25 years of data on the health and well‐being of the Medicare population, the MCBS is uniquely positioned to inform policy discussions about the care needs of Medicare beneficiaries, particularly for those receiving home‐based care. This data brief uses the 2012 MCBS Access to Care Research Files to examine the characteristics of beneficiaries who have difficulty with normal daily activities and whether they are receiving help in per‐ forming these activities. It also examines whether the characteristics of beneficiaries receiving help have changed over time.
Click below to access the full data brief.