Senators hear calls for Medicaid memory‑care rate as providers warn of limited capacity for dementia care

Summary

Sen. Tanya Stoehr introduced LB 61 to require DHHS to seek a Medicaid waiver and for the Legislature to appropriate funds for a memory‑care assisted living rate. Providers and advocates urged the committee to expand access and avoid nursing‑home placements; DHHS concerns about fiscal modeling and timing were noted during the hearing.

Sen. Tanya Stoehr told the Health and Human Services Committee that LB 61 would require the Department of Health and Human Services to file an amendment to Nebraska’s home and community‑based services waiver (Aged and Disabled) to create a Medicaid memory‑care rate for assisted living, and would ask the Legislature to appropriate funds to support that rate.

Stoehr described an aging population and rising dementia prevalence—she cited an Alzheimer’s Association estimate of roughly 35,000 Nebraskans 65 and older currently living with Alzheimer’s—and said memory care requires different staffing ratios, secure environments and specialized training than traditional assisted living. She said many people with dementia do not need full nursing‑home care but do need a secure assisted‑living environment with staff trained to manage wandering,…

Senators hear calls for Medicaid memory‑care rate as providers warn of limited capacity for dementia care

Summary

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