Invest in Medicaid’s Home & Community Based Services – It’s Important

happy asian grandfather with caregiver outside

Most older adults and people with disabilities desire to live at home. Unfortunately, many people aren’t able to do so because they can’t access the support services needed to able to live independently in the community. One of the biggest reasons why is because Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) is underfunded.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to endanger the lives and well-being of people living in congregate settings, it’s more critical than ever that Congress make a major investment in HCBS to ensure older adults and people with disabilities can get the help they need at home. Here is a letter California Health Advocates submitted along with over 150 organizations to urge Congress to invest in HCBS by passing the Build Back Better Act as soon as possible.

Read the full letter for more details. You can also join us in supporting HCBS by your voice via social media and calling your Congress people. Here is a new one-page resource created by our partners at Justice in Aging on how to talk about HCBS with broad audiences who are unfamiliar with the program.

Karen Joy Fletcher

Our blogger Karen Joy Fletcher is CHA’s Communications Director. With a Masters in Public Health from UC Berkeley, she is the online “public face” of the organization, provides technical expertise, writing and research on Medicare and other health care issues. She is responsible for digital content creation, management of CHA’s editorial calendar, and managing all aspects of CHA’s social media presence. She loves being a “communicator” and enjoys networking and collaborating with the passionate people and agencies in the health advocacy field. See her current articles.