After House Committee Chairs Meet on Health Reform, Long Term Care Leaders Say Rescinding...

After House Committee Chairs Meet on Health Reform, Long Term Care Leaders Say
Rescinding Bush-Era Medicare Regulation Critical to Protecting Jobs,
Preserving Quality Eldercare

Administration's FY 2010 Budget Must be Aligned With Nation's Broader
Economic, Health Policy Goals

WASHINGTON, June 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As House Ways and Means
Chairman Charles Rangel (D-NY), Energy and Commerce Chairman Henry Waxman
(D-CA) and Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller (D-CA) met
yesterday with House Democrats to begin crafting a health reform package,
leaders of the nation's two largest long term care advocacy organizations
urged the lawmakers to help reject a Bush-era Medicare regulation included in
President Obama's FY 2010 budget that will cut 30,000 key health jobs, and
stifle delivery system reforms already benefiting patients and taxpayers.

"We strongly support the effort of Congress to help President Obama achieve
his job creation and health reform objectives, but we strongly oppose the
Administration's support for a Bush-era Medicare regulation that will kill
health jobs, inhibit patient choice, and slow key delivery system reforms now
benefiting patients and taxpayers," said Bruce Yarwood, President and CEO of
the American Health Care Association (AHCA).

Alan G. Rosenbloom, President of the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care,
pointed out the pending regulation -- sidetracked last year due to significant
bipartisan U.S. Senate and House opposition -- also has the deleterious effect
of cutting Medicare nursing home funding by $1.05 billion in FY 2010, $7.23
billion over five years, and $18 billion over ten years, according to the
Administration's own budget projections.

"With President Obama and his team diligently focused on job creation and
health care reforms designed to expand access and control delivery costs, we
urge congressional leaders shaping the House plan to help ensure the Medicare
regulatory actions being pursued by the federal government are in-synch and
complementary with our broader policy objectives -- not contrary to them,"
said Rosenbloom.

Yarwood and Rosenbloom said the Bush Medicare regulation included in the Obama
FY 2010 budget would be especially damaging to seniors in the many states
across the nation who have already endured, or will soon face, substantial
Medicaid funding cuts as a result of recent state legislative actions. As has
been corroborated by independent research time and again, they said, Medicare
and Medicaid funding are inextricably linked, and the combination of cuts to
both programs squeezes facilities in a manner harmful to Medicare
beneficiaries' care needs, local economies, and the caregiver jobs base.

A new National Governors' Association (NGA) State Budget Update underscores
this concern, and warns "stark declines in current revenues are forcing states
in all regions to consider another round of budget cuts before fiscal 2009
concludes on June 30." The long term care leaders said this is yet one more
reason the Obama Administration and Congress must cautiously consider how any
federal cut to seniors' Medicare funding under the auspices of broader
"reform" could intensify the negative impact of state Medicaid cuts already
jeopardizing older Americans' access to quality long term care and services.

U.S. Representatives Shelley Berkley (D-NV), Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) and Shelly
Moore Capito (R-WV) are leading a bipartisan letter effort in the U.S. House
urging HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to reject the Obama Administration's
proposed Medicare regulation. An excerpt of the letter (available in its
entirety at www.ahca.org and www.aqnhc.org) is as follows:

"We are deeply concerned that access to high-quality skilled nursing care for
America's seniors will be threatened if the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services (CMS) moves forward with an administrative proposal that will
drastically cut Medicare funding for skilled nursing facility (SNF) care.
This proposal will reduce reimbursements to SNFs by a projected $7.23 billion
over five years, rising sharply to $18 billion over ten years. These cuts
will result in the loss of at least 30,323 jobs in skilled nursing facilities
around the country and diminish business activity by $2.5 billion, further
reducing federal, state and local tax revenue. On behalf of our nearly 2
million Medicare beneficiary constituents who receive care in SNFs annually,
we urge the Department to reject the proposed rule and the resulting cuts to
essential nursing and rehabilitative care.

SOURCE American Health Care Association

Katherine Lehman of American Health Care Association, +1-202-898-2816; or
Debra DeShong Reed of the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care,
+1-202-528-4214