Cash and counseling demonstration and evaluation. Start-up activities

One possible approach for making long-term-care systems more consumer-directed is to provide the consumer with a cash alternative. Advocates have touted the possible advantages of this approach, while nay-sayers have worried about the potential for abuse and questioned the claims of cost savings. This article describes the Cash and Counseling Project, a large-scale demonstration project with a rigorous, policy-driven evaluation built into it. Written prior to the project's actual implementation, this article specifically reviews the major evaluation questions, and the state selection process.