State announces balanced long-term-care spending

State officials announced this week that Ohio has hit its target of using at least 50 percent of its Medicaid long-ter-care budget on home- and community-based services, a year ahead of a federal deadline for rebalancing long-term-care spending (Source: “Ohio reduces spending on nursing homes,” Columbus Dispatch, Sept. 11, 2014).

Last year, Ohio received $169 million from the federal government to help keep seniors and those with disabilities in their homes rather than nursing homes. Ohio was one of 16 states awarded funding through the Affordable Care Act’s Balancing Incentive Program. That program required that funding be balanced by Sept. 30, 2015.

Ohio’s total long-term-care spending currently is about $6.9 billion, roughly a third of the overall Medicaid budget.