The following is a statement from Shawn Sebastian, Director of Organizing at RuralOrganizing:
The Harris/Walz “Medicare at Home” benefit is made for rural America. Rural Americans are older, more likely to be sick, and have less access to healthcare – we needed this. For years, we’ve talked about rural communities needing lower prices, higher wages, and a better quality of life. One of the biggest factors has been the cost of health care and the ability to care for our families, especially our elderly parents and relatives and children.
Today, the Harris/Walz campaign unveiled its “Medicare at Home” benefit, which is designed to help our families do caregiving. This could dramatically improve the lives of so many Americans, especially those in rural communities, by keeping them in their homes. Another key provision is the stop “Medicaid Estate Recovery.” That means the homes of seniors won’t be seized to recover Medicaid costs. As the campaign noted, this practice “particularly harms rural and minority families and prevents them from building wealth.”
Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are life lines for so many of our rural residents. Protecting and strengthening these programs is what our communities need. And today’s announcement is a major step in the right direction.
The mission of RuralOrganizing.org is to rebuild a rural America that is empowered, thriving, and equitable. Follow us on Twitter @RuralOrganizing.
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