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Reps. Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02), Bobby Scott (D-GA-03), Alma Adams (D-NC-12), Jennifer McClellan (D-VA-04), State Sens. Natalie Murdock, Sonya Halpern, State Rep. Spencer Frye, Mayor Deanna Reed Headlined “Lower Costs, Better Care” Bus Tour Events

On the third week of Protect Our Care’s nearly 12,000-mile “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour, “Care Force One” made stops in three states to make sure everyone understands that our health care is at stake. During each stop, national and local elected officials, health care advocates, and storytellers sounded the alarm about the threat Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans pose to American health care. MAGA Republicans want us to go back to the days when insurance companies made the rules and could deny people coverage. As Republicans fight to raise costs on working families, deny coverage for pre-existing conditions, and repeal the Inflation Reduction Act and Affordable Care Act, the Biden-Harris administration continues to improve access to quality and affordable health care. Next week, the tour continues in New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 17 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles.

Watch All Bus Tour Stops Here

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Representative Jennifer McClellan (D-VA-04), and health care advocates at Diversity Thrift in Richmond to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

• Virginia Mercury: National bus tour stops in Va., boosts Democrats’ promise to protect ACA, Inflation Reduction Act

Watch the event here.

HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Mayor Deanna Reed, and health care advocates at Ralph Sampson Park in Harrisonburg to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

• WSVA: Preview of Harrisonburg Bus Tour Stop
• Rocktown Now:  ‘Protect Our Care’ tour stops in Harrisonburg
• Q101: ‘Protect Our Care’ tour stops in Harrisonburg
• Daily News Record: Officials call on voters to protect healthcare

Watch the event here.

DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by State Sen. Natalie Murdock, and health care advocates at Durham Central Park in Durham to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Representative Alma Adams (D-NC-12), and health care advocates at Charlotte Mecklenburg Government Center in Charlotte to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

COLUMBUS, GEORGIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Representative Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02), and health care advocates at The Bibb Mill Event Center in Columbus to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

• WRBL: Georgia democratic reps advocate for low-cost, better quality healthcare
• Aol.com: Georgia democratic reps advocate for low-cost, quality healthcare
• Yahoo.com: Georgia democratic reps advocate for low-cost, quality healthcare

Watch the event here.

ATHENS, GEORGIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by State Representative Spencer Frye, and health care advocates at Rashe’s Cuisine in Athens to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Coverage:

• Athens Flagpole: Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff Will Campaign in Athens With Michael Stipe

Watch the event here.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by State Senator Sonya Halpern and State Representative Jasmine Clark, and health care advocates at IBEW Local 613 in Atlanta to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA

Protect Our Care’s Care Force One was joined by Representative Bobby Scott (D-GA-03), and health care advocates at Teamsters Union Hall in Norfolk to highlight how the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress have delivered on their promise to drive down health care costs and how health care remains under threat by Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans. 

Watch the event here.

FOR PLANNING PURPOSES
Contact: Katie Baker, 740-485-1125, [email protected]

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2024 AT 10:30 AM***

U.S. Representative Bobby Scott Headline Event in Norfolk, Virginia as Care Force One Travels Across 17+ States, Makes Over 50 Stops, and Covers Nearly 12,000 Miles

Watch All Bus Tour Stops Live Here.

Virginia — During week three of Protect Our Care’s “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour, Representative Bobby Scott will join health care advocates and Protect Our Care for events in Norfolk to make sure Virginians understand that our health care is at stake. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress lowered premium costs, capped the monthly cost of insulin, and gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices. While we celebrate this progress, Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are fighting to go backwards, raise costs, take away protections for pre-existing conditions, and leave millions of people without critical coverage. MAGA Republicans want us to go back to the days when insurance companies made the rules and could deny people coverage.

Health care is a top issue for people across the country. During each stop, national and local elected officials, health care advocates, and storytellers are sounding the alarm about the threat Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans pose to American health care and celebrating the historic steps the Biden-Harris administration has taken to provide working families the quality, affordable care they need to stay healthy. Later this week, the tour continues in Virginia. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 17 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles.

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA:

WHO:
U.S. Representative Bobby Scott (D-03-VA)
Rhena Hicks, Freedom Virginia
Jillian Goodwin, health care advocate
Laurice Yarn, health care advocate
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: Teamsters Union Hall, 5718 Bartee St, Norfolk, VA 23502

WHEN: Friday, October 11, 2024 at 10:30 AM ET

Harris’ New Proposal Calls For Extending Medicare Coverage For In-Home Health Care Services As Well As Coverage For Vision and Hearing Care

Yesterday, Vice President Kamala Harris announced a new proposal to expand Medicare to help older adults and their families pay for in-home health care, helping working families, older Americans, and the “sandwich generation.” The Harris campaign also released plans to add vision and hearing coverage to traditional Medicare. These new benefits will be paid for by the billions of dollars in savings generated by expanding the Inflation Reduction Act’s Medicare drug price negotiation program, which already is saving older adults and taxpayers billions of dollars. Harris wants to accelerate the program and increase the number of drugs included in negotiations and to pay for long-term care, vision, and hearing coverage. 

Harris continues to be a health care champion for lower costs and better care, but President Trump wants to go backwards. Trump is continuing to push the MAGA Project 2025 agenda that includes cutting Medicare, repealing the historic Inflation Reduction Act, banning Medicare from negotiating drug prices, raising drug costs and out-of-pocket expenses, and ending protections for the over 100 million Americans with pre-existing conditions. 

Expanding Medicare to cover in-home health care, vision, and hearing would be a big deal for older Americans across the country. The vast majority of older adults want to stay in their homes, and these benefits will help them age in place while giving their families more breathing room. But don’t just take our word for it:

Inside Health Policy: Harris Proposes Select Medicare Vision, Hearing Coverage Expansion.

• “Harris proposed Tuesday (Oct. 8) to extend Medicare coverage to certain vision and hearing services, including glasses and hearing aids, in addition to adding a long-term care at home benefit to the program, the cost of which would be offset through expanded drug price negotiations, according to a fact sheet.”
• “More than 90% of Medicare enrollees use glasses or contacts and nearly half of enrollees’ struggle with hearing, Harris’ campaign says in a fact sheet. Under Harris’ proposal, Medicare would cover hearing aids and related exams as well as eye exams and glasses or lenses.”
• “‘This is so important for seniors,’ Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse says in an email to Inside Health Policy. ‘The combination of long-term care and benefits for vision and hearing will mean so much to the safety, financial security, health, and dignity of seniors. The vast majority of older adults want to stay in their homes, and these benefits will help them age in place while giving their families more breathing room. It can’t be overstated what a game changer this will be for seniors and their families.’”

The New York Times: Harris Proposes Medicare Benefits for Home Care, Vision and Hearing.

• “[T]he Harris campaign also endorsed expanding Medicare to cover vision and hearing benefits — proposals that have been floated before but rejected by Congress. Medicare, the federal insurance program for older Americans, does not cover such services, which many older people use. Some private Medicare Advantage plans offer it as an optional benefit.”
• “Home health services that last more than a few months represent ‘the biggest gap in Medicare,’ said David Grabowski, a health policy professor at Harvard who studies long-term care. Medicaid, the federal-state program for the poor, covers home care for elderly and disabled Americans who need it, but people are forced to spend all their savings to qualify and often face long waiting periods.”

Axios: Harris Campaign Leans Into Long-Term Care At Home.

• “Harris’s proposal would let Medicare cover in-home health care after a medical provider has determined an enrollee needs help performing daily tasks. Medicare would create a sliding scale for beneficiary cost-sharing for the long-term care services. The administration would partner with technology companies and other private-sector businesses to create the program, a fact sheet said. Harris also announced on Tuesday that she would work with Congress to add vision and hearing coverage to traditional Medicare and end Medicaid programs’ ability to seize the homes of recently deceased enrollees.”
• “Medicare currently doesn’t cover long-term care — a fact that often catches older adults by surprise. Medicare’s existing home health benefit covers specific services like physical therapy and medical supplies for a limited time following a hospital stay. It does not cover help with daily activities like bathing or cooking. That leaves Medicaid as the main payer of extended care for seniors and people with disabilities. Many people end up spending down their assets near the end of life to qualify for Medicaid coverage of long-term care. Others might pay upward of $100,000 out of pocket for home aides.”

TheGrio: Kamala Harris’ Proposal For At-Home Care Could Be Game Changer For Black Americans.

• “Addressing the challenges of the “sandwich generation” of Americans caring for children and their elder parents, the Democratic presidential nominee announced a plan to expand Medicare services to include at-home elder care as a benefit for the first time.”
• “Tackling wages for domestic workers is something President Joe Biden has done while in office. His administration finalized a rule that requires 80% of federal funds used for home care agencies to go toward increasing worker wages. […] Not to mention, the majority of home care workers are Black women — [Hillary Holley, executive director at Care in Action] notes it’s about 80%. A large percentage of these workers also happen to be Black women over 50 and are usually the matriarchs of their families.”

The 19th: Harris’ Medicare Proposal Could Transform Long-Term Care For The Middle Class.

• “Harris’ proposal would have enormous impact on middle-class Americans — a focus of her campaign. Unlike Medicaid, Medicare is not based on income and is available to all Americans over 65, as well as some younger people with specific medical conditions. Women in particular are poised to benefit from the proposed change as they are more likely to be caregivers for family members who need long-term care and to require care themselves as they age due to living longer on average than men. In addition, many families are currently part of what’s called the ‘sandwich generation,’ meaning they are caring for both aging relatives and children at the same time.”

The American Prospect: Harris In-Home Care Plan Recognizes Information Gap on Seniors.

• “The ‘Medicare at Home’ plan, according to a Harris campaign fact sheet, is designed to allow seniors and people with disabilities to receive assistance at home, rather than be put into costly nursing homes. It could also reduce hospitalizations, like from falls at home seniors suffer without help. (Hearing and vision coverage, which could limit other maladies that spring from untreated hearing and vision problems, could also reduce the need for some medical treatment.)”
• “After medical evaluations, doctors could prescribe home health assistance from qualified care aides certified by the Medicare program. The Harris proposal states there would be a sliding scale of cost-sharing for higher-income seniors, with full coverage at lower incomes. On the workforce side, the proposal promises to ‘draw upon best practices across Medicare plans as well as the private sector’ to train eligible care aides, while promising better wages.”

The Nevada Independent: In Reno, Walz Touts Home Health Care Plan, Harris Receives First Nevada Tribe Endorsement.

• “Less than a month before the November election, Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) made the Harris campaign’s latest bid to turn out voters in the Silver State, highlighting a recently announced proposal to cover home care, vision and hearing under Medicare and receiving Nevada’s first tribal endorsement of the cycle.”
• “‘For the first time in history, [Harris] negotiated with Big Pharma to make sure that we can now negotiate for Medicare drugs. The savings we make from that can pay for our senior care,’ Walz said, highlighting how funding for Harris’ Medicare proposal will come from the drug-price negotiation plan and crackdowns on hidden drug costs.”

Investopedia: How Harris and Democrats Will Change Medicare If They Win.

• “In an appearance on ‘The View’ today, Harris proposed to allow Medicare to cover in-home health care. She said allowing people who need long-term care to receive it at home helps preserve their independence. ‘They want to stay in their home,’ Harris said. ‘They don’t want to go somewhere else. Plus, for the family to send them to a residential care facility to hire somebody is so expensive.’ Harris said on ‘The View’ that Medicare would pay for the new benefit by using the savings from drug price negotiations. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 allows the government to bargain with drug companies for drugs covered under Medicare Part D (starting in 2026) and Part B (starting in 2028).’”

The Palm Springs Tribune: Kamala Harris Proposes Historic Medicare at Home Benefit to Support Caregivers and Seniors.

• “In a significant move aimed at enhancing support for families navigating the complexities of caregiving, Vice President Kamala Harris has unveiled a plan to expand Medicare coverage to include in-home health care services. This proposal is not just about medical care; it’s about ensuring dignity for both patients and their caregivers.”
• “Currently, over 67 million Americans rely on Medicare, yet many are unaware that it does not cover long-term services such as home health aides. This gap leaves families facing daunting decisions and financial strains when seeking care for elderly or disabled loved ones. The absence of coverage for these essential services can force families into challenging situations, often compromising the quality of care provided. Harris’s proposal aims to rectify this by introducing a new Medicare at Home benefit that will provide comprehensive coverage for home care services. This initiative is designed to alleviate the burdens on caregivers, allowing them to focus on providing compassionate care while pursuing their personal and professional aspirations.”

*** MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9 AT 2 PM PT // 5 PM ET ***

Las Vegas, Nevada – On Wednesday, October 9 at 2 PM PT // 5 PM ET, Congressman Steven Horsford will host a roundtable discussion with Dr. Christina Madison, Nevada Health Link Program Director Rosa Alejandre, and Cancer Survivor Kelly Despain, on the need to lower health care costs for Americans. Rep. Horsford has fought tirelessly to protect and expand health care benefits for Nevadans, and recently introduced the Dependent Income Exclusion Act of 2024, which will make health insurance more affordable and accessible for families with dependents who are working part-time, enrolled in job training programs or attending school. A record 21.3 million people nationwide signed up for coverage under ACA marketplaces in 2023, including 96,379 Nevadans.

In addition to the Dependent Income Exclusion Act of 2024, Rep. Horsford has worked to lower health care costs. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, Horsford and other Democrats in Congress provided relief to those who purchase insurance on their own, capped the monthly cost of insulin, and gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices. Now over 60,000 seniors on Medicare are paying less for life-saving medications.

WHO:
Congressman Steven Horsford
Dr. Christina Madison
Rosa Alejandre, Nevada Health Link Program Director
Kelly Despain, Cancer Survivor

WHEN: Wednesday, October 9 at 2 PM PT // 5 PM ET

WHERE: Bottega Exchange Conference Room, 6675 Las Vegas Blvd South # 200, Las Vegas, NV 89117

RSVP: email Sjauregui@hilltoppublicsolutions.com

FOR PLANNING PURPOSES
Contact: Liz Ernst, [email protected]

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2024***

Rep. Sanford Bishop, State Rep. Spencer Frye Headline Event in Georgia as Care Force One Travels Across 17+ States, Makes Over 50 Stops, and Covers Nearly 12,000 Miles

Watch All Bus Tour Stops Live Here.

Georgia — During week three of Protect Our Care’s “Lower Costs, Better Care” bus tour, Rep. Sanford Bishop and State Rep. Spencer Frye will join health care advocates and Protect Our Care for events in Georgia to make sure Georgians understand that our health care is at stake. By passing the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris administration and Democrats in Congress lowered premium costs, capped the monthly cost of insulin, and gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices. While we celebrate this progress, Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are fighting to go backwards, raise costs, take away protections for pre-existing conditions, and leave millions of people without critical coverage. MAGA Republicans want us to go back to the days when insurance companies made the rules and could deny people coverage.

Health care is a top issue for people across the country. During each stop, national and local elected officials, health care advocates, and storytellers are sounding the alarm about the threat Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans pose to American health care and celebrating the historic steps the Biden-Harris administration has taken to provide working families the quality, affordable care they need to stay healthy. Later this week, the tour continues in Virginia. Over six weeks, Care Force One will travel to more than 17 states, make more than 50 stops, and travel nearly 12,000 miles.

COLUMBUS, GEORGIA:

WHO:
U.S Representative Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02)
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: The Bibb Mill Event Center, 3715 1st Ave, Columbus, GA 31904

WHEN: Wednesday, October 9, 2024 at 10:00 AM ET

ATHENS, GEORGIA:

WHO:
State Representative Spencer Frye
Laura Packard, cancer survivor and health care advocate 

WHERE: Rashe’s Cuisine, 585 Vine St, Athens, GA 30601

WHEN: Thursday, October 10, 2024 at 3:00 PM ET

Harris Announces Proposal To Extend Medicare Coverage For In-Home Health Care Services On ‘The View’

Today, Vice President Kamala Harris announced a new proposal to expand Medicare to help seniors and their families pay for in-home health care, helping working families, seniors, and the “sandwich generation.” This new benefit will be paid for by the billions of dollars in savings generated by expanding the Medicare drug price negotiation program. Already, the Inflation Reduction Act’s Medicare negotiation program is saving seniors and taxpayers billions of dollars, and Harris wants to accelerate the program and increase the number of drugs included in negotiations and to pay for long-term care. 

Harris continues to be a health care champion for lower costs and better care, but President Trump wants to go backwards. Trump is continuing to push the MAGA Project 2025 agenda that includes cutting Medicare, repealing the historic Inflation Reduction Act, banning Medicare from negotiating drug prices, raising drug costs and out-of-pocket expenses, and ending protections for the over 100 million Americans with pre-existing conditions. But don’t just take our word for it:

The Hill: Harris Leans Into Health Care In Race Against Trump.

• “Leslie Dach, founder and chair of the Democratic-aligned advocacy group Protect Our Care, said health care is a universal issue. ‘When someone in your family is sick or you’re sick, you know it takes over your life. Every American has felt that anxiety,’ Dach said. Harris’s campaign unveiled policy positions in early September, including a pledge to ‘make affordable health care a right, not a privilege by expanding and strengthening the Affordable Care Act.’”

The New York Times: Harris Proposes a Medicare Plan to Provide Home Care for Seniors.

• “Vice President Kamala Harris outlined a new proposal for home health care on ABC’s ‘ ‘The View’ on Tuesday, a plan for expanding Medicare coverage aimed at helping what is called the ‘sandwich generation’ take care of their aging parents. Many adults find themselves straddling the dual responsibilities of rearing their children at a time when their parents need more assistance to stay at home. And millions of Americans struggle to find affordable home care for themselves or their loved ones as they become older. Medicare, the federal insurance program for older Americans, does not cover long-term care and will generally pay for a home aide only if a patient is recovering from an acute medical condition, like a stroke, and only for a short time, often just a few months.”
• “While Medicaid will pay for a home aide if someone is poor or has no assets, there are long waiting lists to qualify. And in many areas of the country, there is a severe shortage of workers because of low wages and better, less stressful jobs in other businesses. Most people have no choice but to rely on a family member to care for them because they cannot afford the cost of care, which can surpass the expense of an assisted living facility. Agencies can charge about $30 an hour, according to Genworth, a long-term care insurance company. Others end up spending most of their assets and seeking care in a nursing home, where Medicaid does not have waiting lists.”

Reuters: Harris Proposes New Funds For At-Home Senior Care, Aiming At ‘Sandwich Generation’.

• “Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris announced a plan to expand healthcare benefits to cover at-home senior care in an interview on ABC’s ‘The View’ program on Tuesday, the latest policy proposal in her effort to boost the ‘care economy’ and lower healthcare costs.”
• “‘I took care of my mother when she was sick. She was diagnosed with cancer,’ Harris said, describing her personal experience with caregiving. ‘There are so many people in our country who are right in the middle. They take care of their kids and they’re taking care of their aging parents, and it’s just almost impossible to do it all,’ she said. […] Harris’ policy would expand Medicare, the federal insurance plan for elderly and disabled people, to cover long-term care for seniors at home for the first time, including services like in-home health aides, in hopes of saving American families the often high cost of nursing homes for aging family members.”

MarketWatch: Harris Says ‘It’s About Dignity’ As She Floats Plan For In-Home Care For Seniors.

• “The latest Harris proposal is for Medicare, the federal government’s health-insurance program for seniors, to cover home-care services such as in-home aides for a wider number of recipients. In-home aides currently are covered only in a limited way. ‘It’s about dignity for that individual,’ the vice president said during an appearance on the ABC talk show ‘The View.’ ‘They want to stay in their home. They don’t want to go somewhere else. Plus, for the family to send them to a residential-care facility, to hire somebody is so expensive,’ she said.”

Roll Call: Harris Unveils Plan To Allow Medicare To Cover In-Home Care.

• “Kamala Harris proposed a new campaign policy Tuesday to help seniors ‘age in place,’ a popular concept allowing older Americans to receive care at home through Medicare. The vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, speaking on ABC talk show ‘The View,’ said the proposal would allow families to keep their loved ones at home, rather than in nursing facilities, and avoid the associated costs of in-facility care. The proposal would cover home health aides, among other services, and provide relief to family members who juggle their careers and caregiving responsibilities.”

The Guardian: Harris Announces Plan For Medicare To Cover Long-Term Care At Home.

• “If approved, the program would represent a major expansion of Medicare, which currently only covers at-home care under narrow circumstances. Harris made the announcement on ABC’s The View, a day-time talkshow popular with older women.”
• “Today, Medicare typically covers at-home care only in ‘post-acute’ settings, such as when a person is recovering from a surgery. Instead Medicaid, the public health insurance program for the low-income and disabled, is the largest single payer of what the government calls ‘long-term support services’ – everything from nursing homes to the home health aides on which Harris focused. Medicaid spent $207bn on long-term support services in 2021, or roughly 44% of all such spending nationally, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). […] However, Harris did mention that the proposal was made through Medicare to avoid a phenomenon many in the sandwich generation will recognize – the Medicaid ‘spend down’. Families forced to ‘spend down’ their loved ones’ assets must pay for a certain amount of healthcare before Medicaid begins contributing to costs.”

Newsweek: Kamala Harris Touts Medicare Expansion Plan in First Live Interview.

• “Harris outlined key policy plans aimed at easing the financial burdens of middle-class families, emphasizing her commitment to expanding Medicare and lowering child care costs.”
• “The vice president wants to expand Medicare to cover at-home care services for seniors, a move aimed at alleviating financial burdens. Currently, most Medicare beneficiaries must pay out-of-pocket for home aides, a cost that, for some, can be nearly double their income.”
• “By lowering child care expenses and expanding Medicare, Harris aims to ease the pressure on families facing dual caregiving roles—a personal mission rooted in her own experience caring for her mother during her battle with cancer.”

STAT+: Harris Seeks To Tie Expanded Medicare Drug Price Negotiation To Home Care Policy.

• “Vice President Harris is proposing to use cuts to the pharmaceutical industry’s profits in Medicare to fund a home care benefit for people over the age of 65, she announced Tuesday. Harris has followed in President Biden’s footsteps by calling to expand Medicare’s new drug price negotiation to include more drugs and make drugs qualify for negotiation with less time on the market. The drug industry’s fear when lawmakers first allowed Medicare to negotiate drug prices was that once the firewall prohibiting Medicare from interfering with drug prices was broken, Congress would find expanding the program to pay for other policies irresistible. If Harris has her way, those fears could become reality.”

Bloomberg: Harris Pitches Medicare Coverage for In-Home Health Aides.

• “Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled a new plan to cover in-home health care for seniors, a proposal she said would ease the burden on working adults responsible for aging parents and raising children. ‘It’s just almost impossible to do it all. Especially if they work — we’re finding that so many are then having to leave their job,’ Harris said on ABC’s The View, during one of three major interviews set for Tuesday.”

CNBC News: Harris Proposes Expanding Medicare To Cover Long-Term Care At Home. 

• “Vice President Kamala Harris announced a new proposal on Tuesday that would require Medicare to cover the costs of long-term care at home. That coverage could potentially allow millions of seniors and people with disabilities to get care at home rather than in a nursing facility. Over 37 million people, or 14% of the adult population, provide some form of unpaid eldercare in the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The majority of these caretakers, around 59%, are women.”

NPR: Harris Proposes Help For The ‘Sandwich Generation’: A Medicare Benefit For Home Care.

• “Vice President Harris on Tuesday will lay out a new proposal to expand Medicare coverage to help cover the costs of home health care aides for seniors. […] The proposal is squarely aimed at ‘sandwich generation’ women who take care of aging parents as well as their own kids. […] In its current form, Medicare doesn’t widely cover assistance like home health aides for seniors, which can be costly. And nursing home facilities are also expensive. Harris’ plan to expand Medicare to cover at-home care for seniors would be paid for in part by expanding Medicare drug price negotiations, her campaign said.”

HuffPost: Kamala Harris Proposes Big Home Care Benefit For Medicare.

• “Such a plan could mean the option of staying at home, rather than in a nursing facility, for the millions of seniors and people with disabilities who need help with the daily tasks of life. It could also mean physical and financial relief ― and new opportunities for school or work outside the home ― for the millions of working-age Americans who today provide so much of that care on their own without much in the way of outside assistance.”
• “If the proposed legislation is enacted, such a program would represent a substantial boost in federal support for caregiving and, by any measure, one of the largest one-time increases in American history.”

The SF Chronicle: Kamala Harris To Announce Plan To Help Families Pay For In-Home Health Care.

• “A majority of voters support efforts to pay for home care for seniors. A September Data for Progress poll found 88% of likely voters support expanding Medicare to include coverage for long-term in-home care, including 84% of independents and 86% of Republicans.”
• “The global population — and that of San Francisco — is rapidly aging, and in a country where most seniors are dependent on Medicare, access to affordable long-term care to assist with everyday tasks like dressing and bathing and skilled nursing for seniors who need medical care in the home is often hard to find and prohibitively expensive. Medicare covers in-home, long-term health care in a very narrow set of circumstances, and getting coverage can be difficult and complicated.”
• “Harris has long worked on improving paid leave, child care and long-term care and has made her efforts to help families a centerpiece of her campaign. She also cared for her mother at the end of her life. Nearly one-quarter of Americans are caring for aging parents while raising children — a group the Harris campaign said makes up a large percentage of undecided voters, citing internal polling.”

Forbes: Kamala Harris Will Propose New Medicare Benefit To Cover Home Care Costs For Seniors.

• “Harris’ pitch will call for establishing a home care benefit through Medicare to cover the cost of long-term care services—including health aides—for seniors, without them needing to go to a nursing home. According to the Democrat’s campaign, the plan would be funded by the savings from her proposal of expanding Medicare drug price negotiations.”
• “Harris campaign officials told various outlets that the proposal is aimed at the so-called ‘sandwich generation’ of middle-aged Americans—who account for nearly a quarter of the U.S. population—and make up a sizable percentage of undecided voters. According to the Pew Research Center, the ‘sandwich generation’ is made up of adults who are supporting a living parent aged 65 or older, while also raising a child under the age of 18 or financially supporting a grown child.”

The Wall Street Journal: Harris Wants Medicare to Cover Home Care for More Seniors.

• “Vice President Kamala Harris is proposing a new Medicare benefit for in-home eldercare, part of a pitch to middle-aged voters who are grappling with the dual cost of raising children and attending to their aging parents.”
• “The proposal would cover long-term home care services, including health aides, according to Harris campaign officials, allowing many seniors to get the support they need without going to a nursing home. The officials said the benefit, which would require congressional approval, would be paid for from the savings from a series of proposals Harris has made to lower prescription-drug costs. The plan builds on a proposal pitched by President Biden that didn’t win enough support to pass Congress.”
• “Harris has separately called for capping child-care costs at 7% of a working family’s income and for expanding the child tax credit, including offering $6,000 to the parents of newborns.”

Axios: Harris To Propose New Medicare Benefit For Senior Care.

• “Harris’ plan is to expand Medicare coverage to cover at-home care for seniors, enabling families to afford services like in-home health aides, according to a senior Harris campaign official. The plan could help families avoid expensive senior facilities that can cost more than in-home care. Savings from medicare drug price negotiations will help pay for the plan, as will increasing the discounts drug manufacturers cover for certain brand-name drugs for Medicare enrollees.”
• “About 47% of U.S. adults in their 40s and 50s are juggling caring for both elderly parents and young children, according to the Pew Research Center. […] Harris has previously spoken about her own experiences caring for her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, when she was sick with cancer. ‘I have a personal experience with caregiving. I remember being there for my mother when she was diagnosed with cancer. Cooking meals for her, taking her to her appointments …. I know caregiving is about dignity,’ she said at a campaign stop in Pittsburgh last month. America is facing a looming senior care crisis, with nearly 70% of older adults projected to need long-term care services that are hard to come by, let alone pay for.”

Politico: Harris To Propose New Medicare Home Care Benefit For Seniors.

• “The vice president will propose establishing a home care benefit through Medicare focused on helping families afford the cost of caring for seniors at home instead of in nursing facilities, according to a senior campaign official granted anonymity to share details of the proposal. The senior official said the proposal would help older Americans age at home and avoid the costs of in-facility care, which can be thousands of dollars more a month than in-home care. The benefit would cover the costs of various home care services, including in-home health aides.”
• “The proposal is the latest in a line of campaign promises from the vice president aimed at helping parents and other caregivers, something that was one of President Joe Biden’s top domestic priorities. In August, Harris announced a plan to both bring back the pandemic-era expanded child tax credit, as well as establish a new $6,000 tax credit for parents of newborns. Studies have shown that more than 40 percent of Americans, more than 105 million people, currently provide unpaid care.”

Daily Mail (UK): Kamala Harris To Use Her Appearance On The View To Pitch To The ‘Sandwich Generation’.

• “Vice President Kamala Harris is set to propose the first-ever expansion of Medicare to help Americans known as the so-called ‘sandwich generation’ who are facing the staggering burden of taking care of kids as well as aging parents at the same time.”
• “The proposal includes the first-ever expansion of Medicare to include at-home care benefits to help address the long-term care of seniors. The vice president wants to cover home care services like in-home aides, so seniors do not have to choose between having to go to a facility for care as they age or burdening their families.”