Seniors and Medicaid
Medicaid is not only a critical source of health care for pregnant women and infants, children and people with disabilities, it is a lifeline for seniors.
With the retirement of the baby boom generation, 10,000 Americans turn 65 years old every day, and up to 70% of them will need long-term care services at some point in their lives.
Medicaid is the primary source of long-term care services in the nation. It pays for about 40% of all services provided at home and in the community and 70% of all nursing home costs.
Because Medicaid is a federal-state partnership, the federal government is able to set basic quality standards for those services, and I am working hard to make sure that we provide seniors with a full range of safe and affordable long-term care options. For example, I authored a provision to require criminal background checks for long-term care workers, which was incorporated into law as part of Obamacare.
Medicaid also helps 6 million low-income– "dual eligibles" who receive benefits from both Medicare and Medicaid. Medicaid helps low-income seniors pay their Medicare premium and out-of-pocket costs and also can provide additional services – like hearing aids and dental care – that are not covered under Medicare.
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I wish I could tell you that we have reached an agreement on raising the debt ceiling, which is really agreeing to continue paying the debts of the United States, but Republicans continue to insist on massive budget cuts. Cuts which, among many things, would strip health care from thousands of America’s veterans, seniors, and children. The Republicans in Congress are holding our economy and the American people hostage.
Last Thursday, the United States of America reached its debt limit. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that extraordinary measures need to be taken to avoid the United States defaulting on its debts. We must raise the debt ceiling. This is not new spending; it is paying the bill for programs we have already approved. Republicans would rather cut Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, plus help the rich cheat on their taxes, than follow through with our obligations. It is time my colleagues put the livelihood of Americans first.
WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a Senior Chief Deputy Whip and Chair of the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee, released the following statement today after the House of Representatives passed the Inflation Reduction Act:
WASHINGTON – On Friday, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a Senior Chief Deputy Whip, Chair of the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee, and Co-Chair of the House Democratic Task Force on Aging and Families, introduced the Infrastructure Modernization Project Related to the Overall Enhancement of Nursing Homes Act (IMPROVE Nursing Homes Act). This legislation would create a grant program to convert traditional nursing homes into small-house nursing homes with person-centered cultures.
WASHINGTON - Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a Senior Chief Deputy Whip, Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee, and Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the House Democratic Task Force on Aging and Families, released the following statement in response to President Biden's announcement of initiatives to protect seniors and people with disabilities living in nursing homes, which he will discuss in tonight's State of the Union:
WASHINGTON – This week, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), a Senior Chief Deputy Whip and Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the House Democratic Task Force on Aging and Families, introduced the Stop Unfair Medicaid Recoveries Act. This legislation would repeal the federal requirement that state Medicaid programs go after families and estates for repayment of Medicaid long-term care services.
WASHINGTON— Today, Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ), and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) reintroduced the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Restoration Act. Over 8 million Americans, all of them over the age of 65 or with significant disabilities, rely on SSI benefits to meet their basic needs. Currently, SSI benefits provide an average income that is below the poverty line. With the program being largely unchanged since its inception in 1972, the SSI Restoration Act makes critical updates to keep beneficiaries out of poverty.