CNN political analyst David Gergen spoke with home care and hospice providers at annual March on Washington event

Mar 28 2011

Nationally known and recognized political analyst David Gergen spoke today at the National Home Care & Hospice Association’s March on Washington event about the uncertain times that we face as a country.

“I can’t remember a time of such uncertainty…of a time when our problems seem so big and the opportunity to solve them through the political process seems so small,” said Gergen.

In addition to the economy, Gergen asserted that home care and hospice is an economical way to address the country’s budget issues with an average Medicare cost $135 versus the $1500 average daily cost for a hospital.  “It isn’t just about the money though the central argument is the moral debate that each of us has a right to die with dignity,” said Gergen.

The annual March on Washington & Law Symposium Conference & Exposition brings together hundreds of home care and hospice providers and will address current hot topics in health care legislation, regulatory matters, technology and hospice. Attendees will keep the fight alive for the critical, high-value, high-quality care that is delivered every day to some of the nation’s most vulnerable individuals.

“My sense is that what you are doing is vital to the country, it is vital not only to the economics of the country but to the quality of care in the country and the quality of caring about each other,” said Gergen. “And that you are becoming even more important in the coming years because of the baby boom generation.”

The annual march comes at a time when $12 billion in Medicare cuts to the industry are already planned over the next few years even though home care and hospice is more cost effective, saving billions in Medicare expenditures. In 2009, the average home care visit cost $135.00 per day versus the average hospital visit that cost $1500 a day.   Preventive home health care saves Medicare and Medicaid billions of dollars per year.

About David Gergen

David Gergen is a senior political analyst for CNN and has served as an adviser to four U.S. presidents. He is a professor of public service and the director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. In 2000, he published the best-selling book, Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership, Nixon to Clinton. For a full biography of David Gergen, please visit www.davidgergen.com.

About NAHC

The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) is a nonprofit organization that represents the nation’s 33,000 home care and hospice organizations. NAHC also advocates for the more than two million nurses, therapists, aides and other caregivers employed by such organizations to provide in-home services to some 10 million Americans each year who are infirm, chronically ill, disabled and dying. Along with its advocacy, NAHC provides information to help its members provide the highest quality of care and is committed to excellence in every respect. To learn more about NAHC, visit www.nahc.org and www.caring.org.