According to an article published in the Miami Herald, in 2015, nearly 50 nursing homes were added to Florida’s state “watch” list for marginal facilities. At the time, a third of Miami’s nursing homes were considered troubled. Carol Miller wrote in the Miami Herald that many families are surprised to find out that their geriatric loved ones are living in a “troubled” home.
In another article written for the Miami Herald in 2018, Susan Jaffe and Heidi De Marco stated that there is a common belief that Medicaid does not cover home health care. Colin Campbell is featured in this article. He was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease which has caused him to be wheelchair-bound, as well as made him reliant on help to get dressed and with feeding. Campbell is on Medicaid but has been forced to pay out of pocket, $4000 a month, for home health care. There has been a practice of home health care agencies not accepting Medicaid as a form of payment for long-term patients. This has forced patients to pay out of pocket or has pushed them to accept rehabilitation services, some patients being told the purpose would be for them to get better and to no longer need care at home.
Needed Support
Medicaid, as described on Medicaid.gov, “provides health coverage to millions of Americans, including eligible low-income adults, children, pregnant women, elderly adults and people with disabilities. Medicaid is administered by states, according to federal requirements. The program is funded jointly by states and federal governments.” Often, Medicaid is used by our aging population, filling in when seniors may not be able to cover health costs on their own. Medicaid is a necessary support for many Americans, allowing them to receive the care they need. But some people, like Campbell, also need Medicaid to continue with their lives.
Campbell was told that his Medicaid would not cover his home health cost, leaving him with a large monthly medical bill. Unfortunately, Colin Campbell is not alone. But when a patient advocate is involved and can be present to help seniors like Campbell navigate the sometimes tricky world of long-term medical care, seniors have a better chance at not only receiving the care they need, but they also have a trained professional on their side to ensure that they have access to the resources that can either cover or reduce their cost of care.
Trained Advocacy
Advocare provides professionally trained care managers who can advocate for seniors when they or their families cannot. We at Advocare believe that everyone deserves quality care and quality service but do understand that it can be difficult to secure those two things. Campbell, and seniors like him, have the right to know that their form of insurance does cover the medical services they need, and with the help of a patient advocate from Advocare, they would have a person by their side asking the necessary questions, mending the broken lines of communication, and making sure that you or your loved one has what they need and are taken care of.
Our approach at AdvocCare is to first assess your situation, working to determine what needs there are and if there are any issues or potential problems that need to be addressed. Our patient advocate’s sole purpose is to make sure that their patients have access to the resources needed for them to live a happy, whole, and fulfilling life. Once our advocates have assessed your situation, they are trained to advise you or your loved one on what would be the best course of action. Your advocate would walk you through the process of securing resources and care, step-by-step, making sure that not only you are treated fairly, but that you understand fully, what is being provided for you and what you may or may not have access to.
We Will Show Up for You
Make the commitment today that you will do what is necessary to ensure that your loved one, or that you, yourself, will have the best medical care available. You, or the senior in your life, deserves to have the best in care and the best in support. Advocare is here and ready to meet the needs of seniors in Miami, knowing that with knowledge and access, everyone can receive fair treatment and quality care. Call us today, let us show up for you.