Action Alert

May 6, 2005

NCIL PAS Subcommittee: NOW is the time to move to build support for Money Follows and MiCASSA!!!

“... If we believe that every American, young and old, has the right to live in the community, if we have really learned that this can be achieved, the time is now to go farther down the 'road to independence.'  It is time for action by Congress to give individuals the choice and control over their future that they deserve."

-- CMS Administrator Dr. Mark B. McClellan

Right now, we have an opportunity to pass Money Follows the Person and to promote MiCASSA that we cannot allow to pass us by!

Last week, CMS Administrator, Dr. Mark McClellan included this stirring statement in his testimony to the House Energy and Commerce Committee during a hearing looking at ideas for the future of Medicaid and long-term care in the United States. He stated that CMS is asking the 109th Congress to pass legislation to put Money Follows the Person into effect. Dr. McClellan received an impressively bipartisan reception, with many Democrats and Republicans both condemning the institutional bias in Medicaid and agreeing in principle that legislative change in this area is necessary.

Yet, one would not know this from looking at the relatively small lists of supporters that have signed onto the Senate and House versions of MiCASSA (13 senators supporting S 401 and 9 representatives supporting HR 910

respectively) and S 528, the Senate Money Follows the Person legislation (only 4 Senators). Many previous co-sponsors are not even aware that MiCASSA has been introduced. This will not get the job done in passing Money Follows the Person and we cannot rely on others to do the work for us! Nor can we afford to wait till the NCIL Conference July and rely on our hill visits to get the job done!

Therefore, NCIL is urging advocates to ACT NOW and with a sense of urgency to persuade your Senators and Representatives to demonstrate their support for ending the institutional bias by signing onto MiCASSA and Money Follows the Person as co-sponsors. They need to be getting letters, phone calls and legislative visits telling them that we expect responsible legislators from both parties to get the job done – this year!

Attached, please find the list of supporters of MiCASSA and Money Follows during this Congress (the 109th) as well as the previous Congress (the 108th). If your legislators are on the second list but not the first, you should place extra priority on making certain that these legislators reaffirm their support for MiCASSA and/or Money Follows the Person.

Please also find attached membership rosters for the Committees that would be responsible for considering Money Follows the Person and MiCASSA: the Senate Finance Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Since Representatives and Senators on these committees deal with Medicaid as a part of their Committee responsibilities, other members often consider their views to be particularly important and influential. If any Representatives or Senators on these Committees represent you, please place particular emphasis on persuading them to support MiCASSA and Money Follows the Person.

ACTION STEPS:

Money Follows the Person [S 528] Talking Points

Money Follows the Person is a demonstration project that would require the federal government to reimburse the state for 100% of the first-year costs of home and community based services for individuals on Medicaid who move to the community from nursing homes or other institutions. In year two, the state match returns to the original rate. Reasons for passing this bill include: