Walden: Legislation Will Ensure Oregon Seniors Get The Care They Need

Representative Greg Walden introduced legislation Tuesday he said will protect access to home health care services for seniors in Oregon and nationwide. Walden said the “Securing Access Via Excellence for (SAVE) Medicare Home Health Act” will stop the Obama Administration’s proposed 14% payment cut to home health care providers. Instead, he said it will put into place smart reforms that reward home health agencies that provide high value care to their patients while reducing payments to agencies that don’t meet certain performance and quality standards.

“And it’s not just a win for the patient. Home-based care benefits Medicare as a whole. Having people recover at home is less expensive than in a hospital or nursing home. But the Obama Administration’s cuts have put thousands of Oregon seniors in danger of losing their home health care.”

According to the Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare, more than 15,000 Oregonians using home health services could lose access to their providers and nearly 3,000 home health care workers in Oregon could lose their jobs.

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