Home Health Care News will be observing the Thanksgiving holiday this Thursday and Friday, but we will return to our regular posting schedule on Nov. 30. In the meantime, HHCN would like to wish our readers a safe and enjoyable Thanksgiving.
For now, here are a few happenings in the home health sector this week.
POTUS Signs Innovation Act, Expands Home Health Opportunities—Long-awaited legislation that could allow more individuals to receive care services in their homes has been signed into law. President Barack Obama recently signed the Innovation Act, opening up the Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) for people in need of a nursing home level of care and allowing them to receive such services in their homes.
McKesson Ventures Bets on Home Care Tech—For the first time ever, McKesson Ventures has made a direct investment in the home care space. San Francisco-based ClearCare, a home care tech startup that provides paperless care management software, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from McKesson Ventures, the venture capital branch of Fortune 500’s McKesson Corporation.
Does Home Care Need an ‘iPhone of Aging’?—More people rely on home care agencies than in-home technology devices to facilitate aging in place. While agencies might welcome the business, the situation might indicate the need for more innovative tech solutions and better marketing strategies, according to survey findings from third-party referral agent Caring.com. This has prompted Caring.com’s Katie Roper to question whether an ‘iPhone of aging’ will hit the senior care industry.
Clinton Proposes Tax Breaks, Wage Reform for Caregivers—As caregiving costs continue to burden families and home care workers across the country fight for a $15 per hour minimum wage, one presidential candidate has vowed to reform tax policies to better support paid and unpaid caregivers alike. U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton proposed a set of initiatives aimed at caregiving families and home care workers, including a tax credit to offset up to $6,000 in costs associated with caring for elderly and disabled family members and an expansion of Social Security benefits to individuals acting as unpaid caregivers for loved ones.
Written by Kourtney Liepelt