A coalition of senior living and care organizations is pressing lawmakers to suspend the rules and push through a piece of legislation that would open assisted living community access to some veterans, at least temporarily.
The American Senior Housing Association, Argentum, LeadingAge and the National Center for Assisted Living joined the Alzheimer’s Association and the Alzheimer’s Impact Movement on July 10 in sending a letter to House of Representatives leadership, urging them to advance HR 8371, the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act.
Included in the package of veteran-related healthcare proposals is a three-year pilot program within the Department of Veterans Affairs to allow 60 veterans access to assisted living as an alternative to nursing homes. That program was part of the Expanding Veterans Options for Long Term Care Act, S 495 / HR 1815, key provisions of which have been rolled into the Dole Act.
“This pilot program is an economically sound and sensible approach to measure the benefits of this setting to not only the resident veteran, but to their families, friends, and fellow veterans,” the groups said in their latest letter, which follows a similar letter the coalition sent in May. “It provides the VA critical flexibility to address the needs of a rapidly growing population of aging or disabled veterans who are not able to live at home and future costs savings will help more veterans receive the assistance they need.”
Members of the Senate Special Committee on Aging and Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs received several endorsements for assisted living for veterans during a joint hearing in June, and a representative from the VA told a House committee last year that the VA supports the pilot program under certain conditions.
The act has broad support in both chambers but is being held up in the House over provisions unrelated to the assisted living piece of the package, according to ASHA.
The coalition letter urged lawmakers to place the bill on the suspension calendar, a means of moving noncontroversial legislation directly to the House floor before the body’s anticipated August recess, thereby suspending the rules.
