Over the summer, headlines poured in touting Delaware as the nation’s best state for retirement. Articles speculated that it was our tax rates, our lower cost of living relative to neighboring states, or even our beaches and vast outdoor recreational areas that put the First State on the map as a top destination for retirees. Our economic outlook relies on our ability to attract new residents, so this ranking could mean good news for Delaware.
But it is incumbent on us as lawmakers to ensure that our health care industry — and, specifically, our elder care and long-term care infrastructure — can withstand the demands of a rapidly growing aging population caused by an influx of retirees from other states combined with current Delawareans.
There’s no better time for us to focus on this issue as Delaware welcomes a new governor. Over the coming months, the new administration will be laying out a vision for Delaware’s economic development and workforce needs. I believe that supporting our elder care and long-term care economy — including the health care and service workforce needed to sustain it — should be a central pillar of that vision to reflect this growing demographic trend.
As co-chairs of the Caucus on Aging, Rep. Kendra Johnson and I have spent the past several years in Dover to improve the quality of care provided at long-term care facilities across Delaware and examining the state’s aging-in-place network. In doing this work, we have heard from countless patients and their families about a wide range of experiences.
Our legislative efforts during the 152nd General Assembly focused on bolstering our long-term care workforce, strengthening regulations and inspections for long-term care facilities, and providing a better patient experience for aging Delawareans and their families. We have also taken steps to ensure that our state’s facilities are well-equipped to provide high-quality memory care to patients with dementia.
The cost for at home care and residential care is expensive and is often not covered by Medicare. Quality home care and health care services come with a price tag; I have heard and seen how quickly these health care bills can stack up for our seniors and their caregivers. Too many families are struggling to afford these services, and these high costs can deter seniors and their caregivers from accessing needed home or health care.
The Delaware General Assembly has taken steps to fix this. In recent years, we have put caps on certain prescription drugs and passed my bill that protects patients from unfair medical debt collection practices. As Delaware’s population ages, we must double down on our commitment to ensuring that residents of every town and across all three counties should have access to care facilities and in-home services that meet their health care needs — and their budget.
Speaking of budget, we need to be sure that we are maintaining a tax base to support the programs that affect our aging population. We have made a lot of progress to bring down costs for seniors and their families — but there is still more work to be done.
When our Legislature reconvenes in January, the Caucus on Aging will continue to meet and discuss how we can improve quality of life for our seniors. I look forward to our continued collaboration with stakeholders in the long-term care industry and working with the incoming administration to support the needs of our aging population.
State Senator Spiros Mantzavinos represents the 7th District, which encompasses Elsmere, Greenbank, Marshallton, the Lancaster Pike/Newport Gap Pike areas and portions of Newport and Stanton.
