Tenncare’s CHOICES program at risk of being discontinued in Tennessee
The CHOICES program is invaluable to changing people’s lives and we want to be able to continue to support it, but at the current reimbursement levels, we will soon be unable to justify the continued losses that we sustain.
As providers for Tenncare’s CHOICES program, we are helping the state rebalance the way long-term care is delivered to the Memphis community. We provide your loved ones with essential home care services such as bathing and eating assistance so they can age safely and peacefully in their own home.
Right now, rising administrative costs and inflation are catching up with providers, like us, across Tennessee. Since the CHOICES program’s inception 11 years ago, reimbursement rates have never been increased for home care providers.
We can’t pay our employees the rate they deserve especially when in several parts of the state, fast food restaurants and retail stores are providing more competitive wages for less demanding work. We need to be able to competitively recruit quality employees to take care of Tennessee’s most vulnerable.
The CHOICES program supports over 12,000 Tennessee residents. More Tennessee seniors and individuals with disabilities deserve those choices, and home-care workers deserve to be paid a fair wage for their hard work. We must take care of those in our care, but also those providing the care.
In 2021, the State of Tennessee will spend up to $78,325 on each Tenncare member receiving care in a nursing home or other facility. The cost to provide services to many of these same individuals in their homes would be a fraction of that cost to taxpayers, between $8,000 and $17,000 annually. The numbers prove that CHOICES is saving Tennesseans hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
The CHOICES program is invaluable to changing people’s lives and we want to be able to continue to support it, but at the current reimbursement levels, we will soon be unable to justify the continued losses that we sustain.
New client referrals are now being denied by our fellow providers due to worker shortages, and we expect these numbers to continue to rise unless reimbursement rates are increased by Tennessee’s lawmakers.
Tennessee’s Seniors have sacrificed so much for future generations. Today, they are counting on us.
Please join us to save and sustain Tennessee’s CHOICES program.
We encourage you to contact Governor Lee’s office and your local legislators and urge them to provide additional and recurring funding to support the CHOICES program in this year’s state budget.
Melanie Keller, RN, BSN, MHA is the president and CEO for Meritan, INC.
Tennessee’s Seniors have sacrificed so much for future generations. Today, they are counting on us.