
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 19, 1991                   TAG: 9104190701
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

THE ELDERLY

IT IS a cruel set of circumstances that threatens some 65 elderly Virginians with eviction from nursing homes in July. They don't have money. But under rules more restrictive in Virginia than in most states, they do not qualify for Medicaid assistance because they have some meager land holdings - land that in some instances is legally tied up and can't be sold.

They went into nursing homes when they were temporarily granted Medicaid in 1989 under a decision by U. S. District Judge J. Harry Michael Jr. He ruled that Virginia had to relax its rules and grant eligibility to anyone who also qualifies for Supplementary Security Income, a federal welfare program. Arguing the relaxed standards would swell Medicaid rolls by more than 7,000 people at a cost of $12 million a year, the state appealed and Michael's ruling was overturned by the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The state, taking pity on the nursing-home residents it had left in a bind, created a special program last year to pay for their care in full. But now that program, which has cost the state about $1 million, is being eliminated as part of the rash of budget cuts to cover the state's $2 billion-plus revenue shortfall. This means the 65 elderly residents could be turned out onto the streets.

To their credit, state officials and advocates for the poor and elderly are searching for solutions. They hope to find ways to qualify some of the 65 for Medicaid. But solutions start with finding some money, and there is none.

Actually, the 65 Virginians are only a small part of an agonizing larger picture. Many of the elderly cannot afford years of long-term care, but to qualify for Medicaid assistance they must rid themselves of every vestige of value. The state is in no position to strengthen the Medicaid safety net at this time. It has an obligation, though, to try to help those who have fallen through the safety net's loopholes.

by CNB