Ohio's Medicaid Home Care Crisis

For older Ohioans, and children and adults with disabilities, receiving health care at home is less costly and more effective than institutional care. But Ohio’s Medicaid reimbursement rates fall significantly short of covering the costs of home care. The rates today are essentially the same as they were in the year 2000. 

As a result, home health agencies can’t afford to remain open, hire workers or accept Medicaid patients, and new Medicaid providers aren’t in the wings. Thousands of Ohioans are on waiting lists for home care services because there are not enough providers. As Ohio's population is aging fast, this issue will not go away. We must think ahead to plan for their long-term care and ensure we have a workforce to care for the influx of aging patients.

Lisa Von Lehmden Zidek, Board Chair of the Ohio Council for Home Care and Hospice, and Joe Russell, OCHCH Executive Director, are all too aware of Ohio’s Medicaid home care crisis. They say the problem can be addressed in the State’s biennial budget and that Ohio should value the health and safety of its most vulnerable residents in a way that’s on par with Medicare and private pay.