Senate Holds Hearing on COVID-19’s Effects on At-Risk Populations, Including Those Leveraging HCBS

The Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing to better understand where the nation stands a year into the pandemic, particularly when it comes to responding to at-risk populations, including people with disabilities. Below is a list of references Senators made to the Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services program:

• Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) asked about establishing and maintaining HCBS, including a strong workforce (at the 53:16 mark).
• Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) asked the following questions specific to the HCBS program (starting at the 1:21:00 mark). She also spoke in her closing remarks about the importance of making HCBS accessible through the expansion of Medicaid and Medicare.
  • Why it is difficult for Medicaid patients to access HCBS?
  • What happens when patients cannot access HCBS?