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Hoosiers deserve a CHOICE in health care Over the past several years Indiana's IN-Home Services administrative system and its accompanying CHOICE program have been rated among the best in the United States by such diverse sources as the Clinton administration and the conservative Indianapolis-based Hudson Institute. And in-depth studies by Indiana University have found a high degree of satisfaction among citizens who utilize the CHOICE and Medicaid aged and disabled waiver programs. CHOICE and Medicaid waivers are state-administered programs through which home health care is delivered to Hoosiers so they can live independently. In the General Assembly, the CHOICE program has had steady, if not spectacular, increases in its funding since the program was enacted into law in 1987 with just $1.5 million over two years. The 2001 General Assembly voted a two-year budget of $97.4 million for CHOICE and an additional $6 million to raise the home care worker salaries. Gubernatorial support for the program has also been consistent, if not always enthusiastic or energetic. In recent years, Gov. Frank O'Bannon has publicly cited the program as "the way we should go" in the future and since 1997 has supported a series of negotiations between home care advocates and his administration to explore ways to expand home care options in Indiana. These negotiation have the eventual aim of establishing a long-term care system that is built around home- and community-based care. "Gov. O'Bannon is absolutely correct that home- and community-based long-term care as delivered through the IN-Home Services program is the most effective method for delivering care to those who do not need expensive nursing home care," said John Cardwell, CAC's Legislative and Program Director. "The governor and the Legislature need to act on this knowledge and do what's best for Hoosier citizens."
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