James M. Jeffords: “Vermont's home health agencies are a model of efficiency for the nation. For the past seven consecutive years, the…”

“Vermont's home health agencies are a model of efficiency for the nation. For the past seven consecutive years, the average Medicare expenditure for home health care in Vermont has been the lowest in the nation. This efficiency was achieved by exclusive reliance on 13 nonprofit agencies which provide care without sacrificing quality, and which adhere strictly to Medicare requirements and guidelines. Today, I am cosponsoring The Medicare Home Health Equity Act of 1998, with my good friend Senator Collins, in order to preserve this high-quality, low-cost home health system from possible insolvency. At this moment, Vermont is facing an unprecedented crisis in its home health care system. This is not a crisis of their own making, and the home health agencies had little, if any, advance warning that disaster was imminent. The crisis that befalls Vermont's home health care agencies, and many others throughout the country, arose from the decision made by Congress, as a part of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA), to adopt a Medicare prospective payment system for home health care.”