Preserve in-home care

University of Kansas researchers project that 90 percent of the increase in our state’s population through 2030 will involve citizens age 65 or over.

However, elderly Kansans should be aware that their lives could be seriously affected by President Barack Obama’s plan to cut $51 billion from Medicare home health services over the next decade.

Advanced home treatments are keeping older Kansans and other Americans out of far more costly hospitals and other institutions, with the potential to save Medicare billions of dollars. Thus, home care is a solution for improving care and controlling costs — especially when one realizes that Medicare pays about $4,600 for a single hospital day vs. $2,200 for a 60-day episode of home care.

As a home health professional, I want to encourage residents of our state to contact Rep. Dennis Moore, Sen. Sam Brownback and Sen. Pat Roberts to tell them to preserve home health.

Bruce Carter

Leawood