Table of Contents
Abstract
3
Long Term Managed Care
4
Introduction
4
Discussion
4
Conclusion
5
References
6
Abstract
Over time, health management plans have evolved to encompass new services that were initially considered a home affair. With the work environment and tight schedules making it hard for care provision at home for people with chronic diseases or conditions, the long-term managed care has emerged. This issue is further elaborated in the essay below.
Long Term Managed Care
Introduction
According to the New York State Department of Health (2011), managed long term care is a health service designed for people who need a long-term care services. These services offer flexibility to the people and further provide choice since the individuals can choose which services to go for and from whom they should get it. Therefore, this essay will work with the assumption that managed long term care services are a basic necessity for people with long term specialized needs and offers them custom made services.
Discussion
To illustrate the position of this essay, it is imperative to look at the history of the MLTC. As indicated by the US Department of Health and Human Services (2005), about 3.1 million people in the US received medical-aid funded MLTC as of 2003. However, only fifty five percent of these were in nursing homes, while the rest received the assistance in their homes through the community based schemes. The total expenditure on these services was 132 billion pounds. However, it was discovered that the average expenses for people with long term care needs was four times that of people with no long-term needs. It was then that the need for having a comprehensive plan for the people with the special long-term needs was established.
The first step in this process was to establish the people who need the long term care services. These people were defined and put into categories as described by the New York Department of Health (20110. They include people with disabilities, chronically ill individuals or people who need health and long-term care services. This last group can comprise people in home or adult day care services. These people stay at their homes and communal settings for as long as possible, only being admitted if there is a major problem. The USDH (2005) asserts this statement by citing that the home and community based services (HCBS) offer case management, but does not proceed to the hospital or nursing home once the individual is admitted.
There are various services that the MLTC offers to the beneficiaries in different settings. These, according to the USDH (2005) include but are not limited to day centers, hospitals, doctor’s office, home or nursing home. The services provided cannot be provided by one individual or a single organization, therefore the services are divided among different stakeholders. The services provided, as noted by the NYDH (2011) offer flexibility to the beneficiaries. This is because there are various services on offer by different caregivers. This leads to the success of the MLTC services. The myriad services provided under MTLC include a wide selection of social and health services, hence almost everybody can get a service that is tailored for his needs.
The future of the MLTC services seems bright. This is because the Medical Modernization Act of 2003 was written due to the demand for long-term care arose from state developed programs in 9 states of the US. The scope of the managed care benefit package has continued expanding and the geographical scope has been evolving with time, with the major focus on urban centers. The target populations have also become more defined with time, and if the trend continues, then the services will expand even more.
Conclusion
From the above illustrations, it is clear that the MLTC services are a basic necessity in the society. It can also be deduced that the prospects of these services are good, which indicates that the people can continue enjoying these customized services. With many stakeholders and varied services, the MLTC is bound to scale even greater heights in health care services.
References
New York Department of Health. (2011). Managed Long-Term Care. Retrieved on 11th Jan 2012 from http://www.health.ny.gov/health_care/managed_care/mltc/index.htm
US Department of Health. (2005). The Past, Present and Future of Long-Term Care. Retrieved on 11th Jan 2012 from http://aspe.hhs.gov/daltcp/reports/mltc.htm
