Montana looks to fast-track Medicaid access for older applicants

Montana is looking to fast-track Medicaid access for older adults who need help to stay in their homes or towns.

Medicaid, the joint federal-state health care program for low-income Americans, opens the door to services such as paying for help to prepare meals or shower safely. But applying for and obtaining that coverage can take weeks or months, leaving aging people in a dangerous limbo: Too vulnerable to live at home without assistance, but too healthy to merit a hospital or nursing home bed.

Montana lawmakers drafted a bill for the legislative session that begins in January that would create a shortcut to that care. The Children, Families, Health, and Human Services Interim Committee’s proposal would allow older people and those with a physical disability who are likely eligible for Medicaid to start receiving in-home and community-based care while awaiting final approval.