Page 12 - 2018PHAVoterGuide
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such as nursing or therapy. However, many elderly individuals who do not require skilled care could
still benefit from in-home personal care services. Greater access to in-home personal care would allow
seniors to remain in their homes for longer, which represents a less costly alternative to staying at an
assisted living or nursing home facility.
District 11 – Lancaster, York (part)
Lloyd Smucker (R) (Incumbent)
A top priority is to ensure that our senior citizens receive the care that they have
been promised and deserve. In fact, I am a cosponsor of H.R. 1825, the Home
Health Care Planning Improvement Act, which would allow numerous home health
care professionals to order home health services under Medicare, including nurse
practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified nurse-midwives, and physician
assistants. I am also a cosponsor of H.R. 2663, the Home Health Documentation and
Program Improvement Act, which streamlines physician documentation requirements
by narrowing the circumstances in which a face-to-face encounter is required with a
physician so that patients may be appropriately transferred from a hospital or skilled
nursing facility when the timing is right and not have their care plan interrupted by burdensome and
unnecessary paperwork requirements. Additionally, I am a cosponsor of H.R. 1676, the Palliative care and
Hospice Education Training Act, which would provide support for palliative care and hospice education
centers to ensure our seniors receive the highest-quality health care. I firmly believe each of these
reforms will not only result in a cost savings for the Medicare and Medicaid programs as more baby
boomers enroll, but also improve care outcomes for seniors.
Jess King (D)
We need to ensure that Medicaid remains a consistent and sustainable option for
working Americans who need access to healthcare, including in-home care. I would
oppose any attempts to privatize or ‘block grant’ Medicaid. I would also work to reverse
the recent tax giveaway to the largest corporations, which increases the deficit that
politicians then use as an excuse to cut benefits. The federal government can do more
to ensure Medicaid receives adequate and consistent funding.
I am interested in exploring proposals to expand Medicare to cover in-home
personal care if we can improve efficiency and lower healthcare costs across the
board. Transitioning to a Medicare-for-all system would reduce overall healthcare costs and streamline
administration, providing greater savings in efficiency and allowing us to potentially expand benefits.
District 12 – Bradford, Centre, Clinton, Juniata, Lycoming,
Mifflin, Northumberland (part), Perry, Potter, Snyder, Sullivan,
Susquehanna, Tioga, Union, Wyoming
Tom Marino (R) (Incumbent)
The candidate did not provide a response to PHA.
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