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Senior Citizen Politics
For One Senior, Medicaid Provides Model Care
Doctor suggested signing up for Medicaid to pay the
$80,000 a year bill for her long-term care
By
Jeff Brady, NPR
News
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Gracie Scarrow and her daughter
Lela Petersen are very satisfied with the care Scarrow receives
through Medicaid. (Photo by Barry Gutierrez for NPR News) |
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Oct. 5, 2009 - Lela Petersen thinks about health care a lot these
days. She's a small business owner who pays $1,150 a month to an HMO,
covering her and her husband. Petersen doesn't have any other option,
but her 94-year-old mother, Gracie Scarrow, is another story.
For the past four years Scarrow has been receiving
long-term care at the Lincoln County Hospital and Nursing Home in Hugo,
Colo., paid for largely by her Medicaid coverage.
Medicaid is the federal and state-funded program
for the poor and disabled. Both mother and daughter say they are very
satisfied with the program. Petersen says her mother is getting exactly
the care she needs.
A Comfortable Life
At the nursing home, in her room she shares with
another woman, Scarrow has decorated nearby shelves with stuffed animals
she won playing bingo. She has a keyboard next to her bed, and with only
a little prompting Scarrow will turn it on and play the old hymn "What a
Friend We Have in Jesus."
Most days Scarrow seems to get along fine at the
nursing home. She always carries an oxygen tank with her, even when she
moves slowly down the hall to the dining room for lunch.
"I have congestive heart failure," says Scarrow,
sitting on the edge of her bed. Before arriving here, she was living by
herself until she passed out one night. "I had a heart pill in my hand,
but I didn't take it."
Petersen says her mom couldn't afford the nursing
home on her own. Her Social Security income is $600 a month and after
selling her house she cleared only $3,500. A doctor suggested signing up
for Medicaid to pay the $80,000 a year bill for her long-term care.
Scarrow is left with about $50 of her Social Security check each month
for spending money.
Petersen said, at first, her mother was embarrassed
about accepting government help, because she's always been independent
and supported herself. Much of her life was spent in facilities like
this one, as a nurse's assistant.
"Mom worked in an era when health care was what it
was called. It was called care. Kindness and care. In today's world,
health care is money," said Petersen.
States Feel The Pinch
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As a nurse's aide, Gracie Scarrow spent 20 years around nursing
homes, and knew she never wanted to live in one. But the day
came when she no longer had a choice. |
Colorado has nearly a half-million people on
Medicaid and, like in a lot of other states, that number rose
dramatically in the past year, increasing by more than 10 percent. The
economy and unemployment are largely to blame.
Typically states and the federal government split
the cost of Medicaid, though with the recent stimulus money the federal
government is picking up a larger share now. Even with that help,
Colorado has difficulty paying its share. Recently the governor trimmed
payments to doctors and hospitals to help balance the state's budget.
Hoping For Overhaul
Politically, Petersen says she typically votes
Republican. But last year she voted for Obama, and she's excited about
efforts to overhaul health care in the United States. She's frustrated
with the costs of her own coverage, but very happy with the Medicaid
coverage her mother receives.
She doesn't have a specific solution for health
care overhaul, but she does support things like tort reform and tighter
regulations for insurance companies. In coming months, she'll watch
closely to see what solutions policymakers in Washington come up with.
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This
information was reprinted from
kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J.
Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser
Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up
for email delivery. © Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All
rights reserved. |
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