Nursing Homes and the Congress: A Brief History of Developments and Issues Page: 3 of 155

                                
NURSING HOMES AND THE CONGRESS: A BRIEF HISTORY OF DEVELOPMENTS AND ISSUES

Introduction
It is the purpose of this report to briefly examine some of the
historical and current legislative developments and issues which have
confronted and still face the Congress regarding the provision of
and payment for health and related institutional services provided to
older Americans by the Nation's public and private nursing home industry.
Prior to 1965, some Congressional study of problems in the nursing
home field had been made, but legislation affecting nursing homes
was only infrequently adopted. Federal matching funds were available
to the States to enable them to purchase nursing home care for certain
aged welfare recipients. Other laws provided some capital and other
forms of financial assistance for the construction and modernization of
public and private facilities. Except for this financial involvement,
however, only limited attention was devoted by Congress to problems
in the long-term health care field.
In 1965, Congress added the Medicare and Medicaid titles to the Socialk
Security Act. This legislation greatly expanded the Government's
previous role and importance as a purchaser of nursing home care for