Researchers: Nevada lags in spending on nursing-home alternatives

Sunday, Feb. 28, 1999 | 9:14 a.m.

"We've spent days trying to figure that out," said Charlene Harrington, a University of California, San Francisco professor who's conducting a study on the matter for the federal Health Care Financing Administration.

Nevada ranks last among states in overall Medicaid money spent on alternatives to institutional care, she said. Nevada ranks 49th in long-term care spending and 48th in providing home and community-based services.

Harrington spent three days in Nevada last week talking to state officials, community leaders, seniors and advocates for the disabled.

She questioned the reasoning behind the state's failure to provide alternatives to nursing-home placements.

Nevada is willing to spend $30,000 a year for a senior to remain in a nursing home, but is unwilling to spend $3,800 a year to help a senior stay at home, she said.

In 1996-97, the state spent $9 million on home and community-based services compared with $68 million for nursing home care.

Paul Gowins of the state's Community Based Services office praised Harrington's research. He's pushing the federal government to give Nevada seed money for startup costs associated with Medicaid-waiver programs.

"Her research legitimizes the issues we've been bringing (to state legislators)," Gowins said. "(It) gives validity to what we've been saying all along."

Harrington will present recommendations to HCFA in September. The federal agency provides Medicaid matching money to states for healthcare programs to assist the low-income and disabled.