Oppose Medicare Home Care Cuts

To the Editor:

November is National Home Care Month. While this represents and opportunity to honor the many professionals who care for patients in the home, it is also a time to encourage public support of the elimination of the proposed 15 percent cut in Medicare spending for home health care. According to the Connecticut Association for Home Care, home health spending was slashed by 45 percent during the first two years of the Balanced Budget Act, which forced $53 billion in Medicare home care savings over two years instead of the projected $16 billion cut over five years. The public cannot afford more cuts in home health care spending!

As health care consumers in modern society it is critical for each and every one of us to urge our elected senators and congressmen and women to support this legislation. Why is the future of home health care critical to all of us? Consider the following:

* Patients now spend less time in the hospital.

* Many procedures are performed on an outpatient bases.

* Length of stay for inpatient care has been dramatically reduced.

* Recovery, rehabilitation, and care for chronic diseases and conditions are happening in the home.

Our elected representatives will be reconvening in a post-election “lame duck” session to decide on the fate of the bill (HR 2614) which contains Medicare Balanced Budget Act relief legislation. Urge your support of the elimination of the 15 percent cut by contacting your representatives listed below:

Congressman James Maloney          203/573-1418

Senator Joseph Lieberman  800/225-5605

Senator Christopher Dodd  800/334-5341

Thank you for helping us call attention to this important issue in health care.

Sincerely,

Mary Ann Faraguna

4 Liberty Street, Danbury, CT                       November 15, 2000