Public Financing of Long-Term Care: Federal and State Roles

This paper provides an overview of public financing of long-term care services for the elderly under Medicare, Medicaid and other public programs. Recent program data on public spending for both nursing home and home care services are presented, as well as selected data on recent expenditure trends, particularly under Medicare and Medicaid. Long-term care expenditures under both of these entitlement programs are increasing rapidly as the demand for services is fueled by the demographics of an aging population. In addition to presenting statistical highlights, this report also describes the organizational characteristics of the public financing of long-term care, and how the financing of long-term care varies across states. [43 PDF pages]