news Long-term care for Maine veterans on verge of collapse

[Veterans News]

Long-term care for Maine's veterans is on the verge of collapse. That's the message veterans' advocates told Senator Angus King Friday at a Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing in Augusta.

King opened the hearing citing estimates that over the next ten years Maine's veterans population will decline by 7 percent, but the number of veterans over 85 who need care will grow by more than 30 percent.

"We are on a precipice of collapse and the reason for that is simple. Yes, we have workforce issues but more than that our reimbursement rates don't cover the total cost of care," Fusco said. "We simply cannot afford to continue to steal from the future of our homes to pay for our present."

Fusco said Medicaid, Medicare and VA reimbursement rates don't cover the cost of care, and she said collaborations that focus on transportation, food insecurity and social isolation of veterans are all under funded as well.

King called on Hartronft to expedite the VA's months-long hiring process so shortfalls in staff can be remedied more quickly. King is a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

Read more at: https://www.mainepublic.org/news/2024-01-28/long-term-care-for-maine-veterans-on-verge-of-collapse

 

[dVet]

It's worrisome to learn about the difficulties that veterans in Maine are facing. I have faith that the lawmakers and governor of the state will work towards resolving the funding challenges to provide adequate support for their aging veteran community. If they succeed in finding a resolution, Maine could serve as blueprint for other states and territories to learn from. By gaining insights from their experiences we can avoid encountering problems in the future, which would be great for all of us as we grow older and require increased care and assistance.