Expedited service delivery: helping case managers to increase access to services for the poorest older adults

Low-income older adults have historically received institutionally based care when they were unable to care for themselves and there was a lack of sufficient formal and informal support to allow them to remain in their own homes. In 1981, revision of federal Medicaid legislation permitted states to provide home- and community-based services (HCBS) for older adults at risk of nursing facility placement in an attempt to prevent unnecessary placement and to offer choice. However, Medicaid-HCBS applicants may have to wait up to 45 days or longer for approval of their financial application. During those 45 days, the applicant may enter a nursing facility because Medicaid-HCBS was not available soon enough to prevent placement. This article presents research on an instrument to help case managers initiate community-based in-home services for the lowest-income Medicaid applicants within 3 to 5 days of initial assessment.