5 Recommendations to Revamp Dementia Care Payment Models

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Care for people living with Alzheimer’s and related dementias (ADRD) is emotionally taxing for caregivers and costly for Medicaid, which spent $146 billion on ADRD care in 2022 alone. In a newly published article in Health Affairs, authors give 5 recommendations to help revamp ADRD care payment models to reduce the burden on Medicaid and caregivers.

According to the authors, “We, the authors, believe care could be vastly improved, and costs could be reduced, if all community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries living with dementia could enroll in a comprehensive dementia care program that addresses the needs of both the persons living with dementia and their caregivers. Congressional leaders and dozens of experts have urged the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (the Innovation Center) to test a nationwide alternative payment model (APM) to provide comprehensive care to those living with dementia. Recently, CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure and her deputies have indicated that improving dementia care is a high priority for CMS, specifically the Innovation Center.”

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(Source: Health Affairs, February 7^th, 2023)