Harris’ Medicare Expansion Plan Would Boost Seniors & Their Families

"We have long championed the expansion of federal support for long-term care - and today, Kamala Harris gave that cause an enormous boost. Harris announced a new plan to expand Medicare to cover the cost of long-term care at home. By covering home and community-based services through Medicare, seniors with serious health issues could 'age in place' at home without having to impoverish themselves (as Medicaid requires).

Expanded Medicare coverage for home health care also would provide relief to millions of 'sandwich generation' Americans, who are struggling to provide care for their elderly relatives while also raising children. Those 'sandwich generation' members are not Medicare beneficiaries, but would most definitely benefit from Harris' long-term care plan.

The vice president's plan also would add hearing and vision coverage to traditional Medicare. Proper hearing and vision care are essential to healthy aging - but too many beneficiaries forgo it due to cost and lack of coverage. It is long past time that those coverages be added.

The new benefits largely would be funded by savings from expanding Medicare's drug price negotiation program - a historic provision of the Inflation Reduction Act which is lowering the cost of medications for seniors. Kamala Harris understands that it costs too much to grow old in America, and is willing to put forward bold, new plans to make life more affordable for seniors and their families. We endorsed her presidential campaign last summer and we enthusiastically support her plan to make historic enhancements to Medicare." - Max Richtman, President and CEO, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare