Harris Would Create A New Medicare Benefit For Long-Term Care

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has backed an earth-shattering idea: For the first time, traditional Medicare would pay for personal assistance at home and related long-term care. Currently, only Medicaid and certain Medicare managed care programs provide long-term care benefits.

Harris endorsed the idea in an appearance on the television show The View and her staff heavily promoted her initiative to news organizations. She’d break down the six-decade wall between traditional Medicare and long-term care and potentially vastly expand government support for frail older adults and their families.