Long-Term Services and Supports as Part of Health Care Reform: Relief for the Invisible Uninsured?

Health and Income Security Brief No. 12 ~ January 2009

Summary:The 2008 presidential election demonstrated a broad interest in health care reform focused on access to affordable quality care and cost containment for both public and private-sector payers. So far, the policy debate has centered on the delivery of acute care services, rather than long-term services and supports (LTSS). But there is a strong case that health care reform will not succeed unless LTSS are also addressed. This brief summarizes some views and history about policy opportunities for long term care that were voiced at a January 2008 roundtable and updates the possibilities to January 2009. Support for NASI’s distribution of the Brief comes from the SCAN Foundation.