Proposed Bill to Expand Home Health Care
Home health care is not a new concept. In fact, for centuries, that was pretty much how health care was administered. A person fell ill and someone in the household fetched the local doctor to come to the home, make a diagnosis, prescribe treatment and a plan and wait to see how the patient fared.
This method of health care worked pretty well for several reasons. For one, the person who was ill – especially if they were quite ill – did not have to struggle through the exertion of leaving their home, their family and their bed to go out and take the ride to the doctor’s office which could be quite a distance away. In addition, they could stay home and sleep or rest while waiting for the doctor, not exposing themselves to the elements especially during the cold times of year that brought rain, sleet, ice, hail and snow. Most of the time the doctor knew his patients and when given the description of the medical situation at hand by the individual who went to fetch the doctor, the doc knew what medicines and tools were needed and brought them to the house.
Today we live in a medical world full of incredible research, extensive hospital systems and services and doctors who specialize in everything from headaches to heartburn to hangnails to heart replacement. Medical breakthroughs happen daily and the progress being made is extraordinary.
All of this being the case, however, there are still those among us who would do better having more of their healthcare performed at home. Chronically ill patients – especially with more than one serious illness – and seniors who find it harder and harder to get around could benefit from having health care performed at home more often than having to go to a doctor’s office, a clinic or a hospital for routine care.
In recognition of the situation, two senators have sponsored a bill that would keep seniors at home and pay for doctors, nurses or other medical practitioners to visit them there. The bill would involve doctors or nurses creating a plan of care with the patient and showing that overall, the plan which would include more home care, would help the patient more and save at least 5% of what they are paying now. If doctors could do this, they could keep 80% of any savings over 5% as an incentive, which would help the doctors and save the Medicare system money.
Even with all the fancy medicine we have available to us today, it is good to know that we have come full circle on a few things that will help seniors and chronically ill patients get good care while remaining comfortable at home when possible.
