Advocates Work with Governor, Legislature on System Reform
In February 2007, Governor Granholm ceremonially re-signed legislation creating a system of “single points of entry,” all-in-one programs where consumers can get information and counseling about long-term care services, helping them navigate a formerly fragmented and confusing long-term care system. Creating one source of information for all current prospective long-term care consumers is part of the nationwide movement to secure more choices for people using long-term care.
Rep. Rick Shaffer was the lead sponsor of the legislation and leader of the Workforce Development workgroup of the Governor’s Medicaid LTC Task Force. Hollis Turnham, PHI’s Michigan State Director and leader of the HCHCW Michigan state, facilitated the workforce development workgroup with Rep. Shaffer. The task force called for health care coverage for all caregivers.
PHOTO: HCHCW Michigan’s Hollis Turnham (directly behind the governor) with Governor Jennifer Granholm and Rep. Rick Shaffer and staff and volunteers of AARP Michigan.
Michigan State Planning Project
The Michigan State Planning Project for the Uninsured completed surveys of uninsured households and employers across Michigan to then develop a set of realistic strategies and viable options for insuring all Michigan residents. A report (pdf) by its Models Development Workgroup, facilitated by Hollis Turnham, outlines the pros and cons of 20 possible models, and an analysis (pdf) conducted by HCHCW looks at how well three of these models would serve direct-care workers.
The Michigan Long-Term Care Task Force was charged in the summer of 2004 with recommending ways of improving the quality of the state’s Medicaid-funded residential, home-based, and community-based long-term care services. In its final recommendation to Governor Jennifer Granholm, the task force identified health care coverage for direct-care workers as an important element of that improvement. The task force recommended that the state identify ways to support employers who offer coverage and better ways to use public insurance to fill employer coverage gaps.
Michigan Long Term Care Reform Coordinated Campaign
The Michigan Long Term Care Reform Coordinated Campaign, a coalition that includes staff from HCHCW, provider groups, and consumer groups, is calling on all Michigan lawmakers to ensure health care coverage for direct-care workers. In a letter sent to every candidate for Michigan’s House and Senate seats before the November 2006 election, the campaign called on the 2007-08 legislature to “respect and honor front line caregivers by ensuring a decent wage and securing health care benefits” and institute three other long-term care reforms. A follow-up letter was sent to all of the state’s newly elected representatives as the new legislative session began in 2007. The coalition seeks to implement the recommendations of the Michigan Long-Term Care Medicaid Task Force.
Recent Comments