Older Medicare Beneficiaries’ Use of Long Term Services and Supports, 2015-2021
Article Publication Date
Summary
The Maine Rural Health Research Center recently released a research article examining the living circumstances of rural and urban Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older between 2015 and 2021.
Since 2010, federal and state policy has worked to shift care from institutional to home and community-based settings. However, recent research suggests that efforts to reduce institutional admissions have not been met by sufficient increases in community based services to ensure adequate service levels for all who need long-term services and supports, particularly in rural areas. This article explores how trends such as the likelihood of living in nursing homes or community settings has varied over time for rural versus urban Medicare beneficiaries.
Since 2010, federal and state policy has worked to shift care from institutional to home and community-based settings. However, recent research suggests that efforts to reduce institutional admissions have not been met by sufficient increases in community based services to ensure adequate service levels for all who need long-term services and supports, particularly in rural areas. This article explores how trends such as the likelihood of living in nursing homes or community settings has varied over time for rural versus urban Medicare beneficiaries.