ETTV America takes you through WelbeHealth’s New Center in Rosemead

Elected Officials and Health Care Advocates Demonstrate Support for WelbeHealth’s Expansion in Southern California

US Rep. Tony Cárdenas, CA Sen. Susan Rubio, CA State Asm. Luz Rivas and Asm. Mike Fong, Alzheimer’s Association and LeadingAge CA among local leaders who attended events marking the expansion of WelbeHealth’s Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) in LA

New locations in North Hollywood and Rosemead provide community-based and at-home health care to thousands of underserved seniors

A diverse coalition of elected officials, advocates for vulnerable seniors, and local health care organizations joined WelbeHealth for the grand opening celebrations of WelbeHealth’s new Los Angeles locations in North Hollywood on October 6 and Rosemead on October 13. 

WelbeHealth Rosemead Community Celebration
WelbeHealth Rosemead Ribbon Cutting

Speakers at the events included US Rep. Tony Cárdenas (CA-29), CA Sen. Susan Rubio, CA State Assemblymembers Luz Rivas and Mike Fong, Rosemead City Council Member Sandra Armenta, Rosemead Mayor Pro Tem Margaret Clark, Alzheimer’s Association Regional Leader and Executive Director Meg Barron, and LeadingAge CA President & CEO Jeannee Parker Martin. WelbeHealth participants Ronald Timmermeyer and Huy Luong also gave testimonials about the positive impact WelbeHealth has made in their lives.

“We are honored to have the support of such esteemed elected officials and community leaders. Our team strives every day to serve the elders of our community like Mr. Timmermeyer and Mr. Luong with the highest quality and compassion, helping them feel connected and at home while caring for their clinical and social needs,” said WelbeHealth CEO Si France, MD.

California elected officials and health care advocates voiced their support for WelbeHealth’s leadership in expanding access to community-based senior health services across the Los Angeles area through the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). The new locations are poised to help meet the needs of over 9,000 seniors eligible for PACE within a 20-minute drive of the two centers. WelbeHealth is committed to ensuring every qualified senior can benefit from comprehensive care.

WelbeHealth delivers fully integrated care that allows frail seniors to age in place with the support of interdisciplinary teams, including doctors and nurses, physical therapists, home care aides, and social workers. Wraparound support like meals, social activities, and transportation address social determinants of health.

Alzheimer’s Association Regional Leader and Executive Director Meg Barron emphasized the impact of WelbeHealth’s PACE services: “WelbeHealth is delivering critical services to vulnerable seniors and their family members like memory care rooms and transportation. I wish my grandmother had access to PACE services.”

Studies have demonstrated life expectancy is higher among PACE participants and depression is much lower than among comparable populations. Beyond improving participant lives, caregivers report high satisfaction

“I will continue to support legislation for our seniors, and I am grateful that WelbeHealth is bringing their program to the San Fernando Valley where my constituents can benefit from their wrap-around services,” said Congressman Tony Cárdenas (D-CA 29th District). “PACE can help us deliver higher quality care to our community at a lower cost. I am proud to be here with WelbeHealth, who are helping bridge the gap providing opportunities for patients to have their health care needs met at home.”

With most participants, dual eligible for Medicare and Medi-Cal, PACE offers a lifeline to lower-income seniors. California State Assemblymember Luz Rivas (D-43rd District) mentioned the struggle many seniors face paying for basic healthcare needs: “With WelbeHealth, everything is included for dual-eligible seniors. They don’t need to worry about paying for prescriptions or the dentist. It is really about lifting up the seniors in our community and ensuring they have the support and resources needed to thrive.”

PACE is also making strides in addressing the needs of historically underserved communities. “Through the PACE model, WelbeHealth ensures that older adults can see culturally appropriate providers,” noted California State Assemblymember Mike Fong (D-CA 49th District).

WelbeHealth breaks down health disparities in access to care. In Rosemead and North Hollywood, over 50% of seniors primarily speak a language other than English. “I value the fact that WelbeHealth employs multilingual staff members and offers activities to serve the needs of our diverse community in a beautiful setting,” said California State Senator Susan Rubio (D-CA 22nd District).

All speakers confirmed that access to PACE should continue to be a priority in California. LeadingAge California’s President & CEO Jeannee Parker Martin stated, “We know that PACE delivers transformative benefits for vulnerable older adults at a lower cost. We should ensure all eligible seniors have access to PACE.” 

Both new locations began enrolling participants on July 1, 2023. WelbeHealth operates programs across California, including Modesto, Stockton, Pasadena, Long Beach, and Fresno.

For more information about WelbeHealth North Hollywood, visit here

For more information about WelbeHealth Rosemead, visit here

About WelbeHealth 
WelbeHealth is a physician-led public benefit company founded in 2015 that provides comprehensive health care services for seniors through a fully integrated program that includes all medical and dental care, physical and occupational therapy, transportation to medical appointments, meals, and personal care services. WelbeHealth addresses social determinants of health to keep the most vulnerable seniors living safely in their own homes. Services are delivered through the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), a national Medicare and Medicaid program. WelbeHealth’s development partner for the beautiful Rosemead facility was Turner Impact Capital.

Media Contact:

Nate Goehring, welbehealth@berlinrosen.com
Angharad Bhardwaj, Angharad.Bhardwaj@welbehealth.com

CBS LA Morning Mix – WelbeHealth

WelbeHealth Issues Statement on Passage of 2023-2024 Budget

Menlo Park, CA – Amy Shin, Chief Mission Officer, WelbeHealth issued the following statement in response to the California Legislature passing a 2023-2024 state budget:

“WelbeHealth appreciates the commitment the California Legislature made to support vulnerable seniors by passing a budget that includes additional resources for Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). Increasing the capacity of the Department of Health Care Services to administer PACE will help ensure that more eligible frail seniors have access to PACE and can more quickly benefit from comprehensive care.

“Securing additional resources for DHCS was a priority for WelbeHealth and CalPACE, and WelbeHealth worked in close collaboration with a coalition that included Leading Age California, California League of United Latin American Citizens, and American Nurses Association\California to ensure this important budget item passed.

“WelbeHealth is grateful to the Governor and the California Legislature for their support of PACE, and we look forward to further collaboration so we can continue to grow this critical program and improve the quality of life for aging seniors.”

ABOUT PACE

Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) is a comprehensive, whole-person health care program for frail seniors living with chronic health conditions and other complex needs that enables them to continue to live in the communities they know and love. PACE is a high-quality cost-effective alternative to nursing home care, costing on average 15% less than the cost of caring for a comparable population through other Medi-Cal services.

PACE organizations have a proven track record of seamlessly planning and managing all aspects of care for seniors – medical, social, and supportive services. PACE participants are over the age of 55, live in a PACE service area, and have been deemed eligible by the state for a nursing home level of care. More than 70% of PACE participants are dually eligible for Medicare and Medi-Cal.

ABOUT WELBEHEALTH

WelbeHealth is a physician-led, mission-driven organization founded to serve the most vulnerable seniors with compassionate and quality care, in a pure value-based model. WelbeHealth manages the entire care portfolio for participants including their primary, specialty, and behavioral health care, ensuring they get to and from appointments, helping them navigate any necessary paperwork, providing assistance with activities of daily living, and ensuring they have enriched lives through social and emotional care.

TIME MAGAZINE: COVID-19 Exposed the Faults in America’s Elder Care System. This Is Our Best Shot to Fix Them

June 15, 2021 (Time Magazine) – When COVID-19 hit the United States, nursing homes in Washington State took the first hit, producing deadly outcomes for older adults. Conditions within long-term care facilities enabled a harrowing spread of any pandemic, let alone a novel coronavirus. Compounding on this, leaders within institutional care were slow to respond when it arrived.

The plight of residents in long-term care facilities across the United States is detailed in a report by Abigail Abrams from Time Magazine. It begins with individuals living at Life Care Center in Kirkland, Washington, in late February 2020 where COVID-19 killed dozens in just a few weeks.

The shocking death rate created a sense of panic and by early March the families of those living within Life Care Center held a press conference appealing to the public on behalf of their loved ones.

“Our families are dying. We don’t know what to do. Our calls for help aren’t working,” said Kevin Connolly, whose father-in-law lived in the facility. “We have limited resources to battle this disease, and I think somebody somewhere decided that this population of people wasn’t worth wasting resources on.”

Nursing homes vs infection

Many nursing home residents live in shared rooms and rely on staff who tend to numerous patients and who often work at various other facilities. The industry’s low pay and long hours make for high turnover. These characteristics can create a lack of consistency in controlling the spread of infection.

The nursing home industry is losing occupancy rates, workers, and money. The long-term care industry could lose an estimated $94 billion between 2020-2021 due to the costs involved in both fighting the pandemic and losing occupancy, according to The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living (AHCA/NCAL).

America is aging rapidly. According to the Census Bureau, around 10,000 Americans turn 65 every day. Most people want to age at home rather than in an institution. Still, people who qualify for Medicaid and Medicare have little to no choice in where they receive long-term care after reaching old age. Governments in many states mandate that they enter long-term care facilities even when home-based care services are available.

In many cases, when a person does not qualify for government-funded care or chooses to avoid mandated care in a nursing home, a family member must often forfeit a job to take on the responsibility of caregiving. And if no one in the older adult’s circle of support can provide that care, paid home based care is challenging to find due to worker shortages. Many workers are leaving the historically low-wage industry, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Policy helps pave the way to home and community-based care.

Policy momentum is growing toward home and community-based care for the elderly across the nation. One home-based care program available to Medicaid/Medicare recipients has a 45-year proven track record of success and operates in more than 31 states. PACE (Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) saves the government money while offering a high-touch, team-based approach to eldercare for people 55 years or older who qualify for nursing home level care.   It receives a payment per participant to provide medical care and dental care, day center programs, meals, home health aides, and many other services to keep seniors safe and living in their own homes and communities. PACE aims to keep this elderly population out of hospitals and nursing homes while incentivizing a flexible, creative, team-based approach to care. On average, states pay PACE programs 13% less than the cost of other Medicaid services.

“The nature of payment provides significant flexibility, as well as really strong incentives for PACE organizations to really proactively monitor and get out in front and address existing and emerging health needs,” says Shawn Bloom, president, and CEO of the National PACE Association.

Data collected during the pandemic show that seniors enrolled in PACE contracted COVD-19 at just one-third the rate of those in nursing homes, according to the National PACE Association.

The push for greater government funding for programs like PACE is growing. President Biden’s proposal to spend $400 billion on home care over the next 4 years could pave the way toward boosting access to more Americans. And proposed legislation in California, Assembly BILL (AB) 540, would allow eligible seniors to be automatically informed about PACE right along with other Medicaid and Medicare options.

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Why We Support California Assembly Bill (AB) 523: Because Lifting Regulatory Bottlenecks Saved Lives During Covid-19 Crisis

Why Assembly Bill 540 Must Pass: Because seniors have a right to know about the PACE option for home and community based care

WELBEHEALTH PACE IN MODESTO ROLLS OUT MOBILE CLINIC TO SERVE MODESTO-AREA SENIORS

Tour our PACE center in Stockton, California

Check out our amazing PACE center in Stockton.

Wildfire Safety Tips for Seniors

The California wildfires have resulted in some of the worst air quality in the nation.  Seniors can be extremely affected, especially participants in our PACE programs so we’ve created some tips for all seniors:
  1. Remain indoors when at all possible.  Keep windows closed to decrease exposure to smoke.
  2. If you MUST go out wear a mask and limit time outside.
  3. Any worsening cough, congestion or wheezing, please call your PACE center right away.
  4. If you need refills on your respiratory medications including inhalers please call and we are happy to refill if appropriate.

To find out more about PACE services we provide, please click here.

Free photo 1024746 © Frank Farrell – Dreamstime.com