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Elderly
immigrants get state aid for nursing home care
From
Woonsocket
Call
October
10, 2003
The pilot program pays for nursing home coverage
for those 65 or older who are in the United States legally and live in
Rhode Island and who would otherwise qualify for Medicaid except for the
fact that they entered the country after August 1996 but did not move to
Rhode Island until July 1997 or later. There is $300,000 in the 2004 state
budget for the program.
"This will help us close the gap for some of our neediest seniors who
are unable to access federal and state assisted nursing home care,"
Fogarty said during a brief ceremony at The International Institute on
Elmwood Avenue
. "In addition, it will also end up saving
the state money since the state picks up the cost of care at a higher rate
when someone can not afford to stay in a nursing home."
Those folks, Fogarty said, usually wind up at the state-run
Eleanor
Slater
Hospital
, which costs the state $749 a day per patient.
In other cases, he noted, family members must quit their job to take care
of that person at home, which Fogarty observed, "can plunge the
family into poverty" and prompt them to look for other state
assistance.
Fogarty was joined at the institute by Sen. Juan Pichardo, who sponsored
the Senate bill that was incorporated into the budget, and Rep. Steven
Costantino, chairman of the House Finance Committee. Rep. Joanne Giannini
sponsored the bill in the House.
Senior citizens with nursing home needs in the state hospital system
represent a "lingering, increasing problem," Costantino said. He
noted that the problem is now extending to the prison population, which
faces issues like Alzheimer's disease and nursing home care.
Pichardo described the program as "a win-win all around." The
state saves money, he said, the state hospital frees up beds and
"families are relieved that their loved ones are being taken care of
and they can go to work and provide for their families."
Fogarty staffer Maureen Maigret said the $300,000 will pay for five
nursing home slots for one year. It is not known how many individuals will
be able to take advantage of those slots over the course of 12 months.
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© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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