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In reply to the discussion: In Addition To Taxing The Poor, Louisiana Will Stop Providing End-Of-Life Care To Low-Income America [View all]exboyfil
(17,862 posts)Part of Jindal's justification is those on Medicaid will get Hospice like care through the nursing home. What happens is that those eligible like my grandmother for Medicaid who also need Hospice care use Medicare benefits to obtain it.
If you are under 65 and not in the Medicare system, then I guess Medicaid in Louisiana was picking up Hospice prior to Jindal's change. They will no longer do this under Jindal. The actual facts of my grandmother's experience destroys one of Jindal's arguments. The nursing homes are not equiped to provide Hospice care as well (at least not how my grandma's nursing home is structured). They already ask alot of the CNAs, many of whom get verbally absued by the patients, and don't pay them that much. I am not entirely sure that their drug dispensing nurses are able to issue all the painkillers associated with end of life. i know Hospice provides counseling and "comfort" therapy as well. Things CNAs with their many patients are unable to do. My grandmother benefitted greatly from my services (as did my dad who died in Louisiana from cancer but he was in his home under private insurance and then Medicare).