Crain’s Cleveland Business first published this opinion piece. 

Ohio’s senior citizens are living longer. Innovative healthcare and burgeoning technologies are extending life and curing the once incurable. Ohio has the sixth-largest senior-citizen population in the country, and the number of those living past age 85 is likely to double by 2051.

But, as a report by The Buckeye Institute explains, human longevity and the price of modern medicine pose significant challenges for policymakers and taxpayers.

The rising costs of long-term care — the kind many will eventually need— are most often shouldered by Medicaid, a joint state-federal program that covers nursing homes, assisted living arrangements, and home-based care services for eligible seniors.

Medicaid already is the largest single payer for long-term care and services, spending more than $250 billion nationally each year and accounting for almost 40% of Ohio’s state-share budget. Long-term care expenditures rise by almost 5% per year, and their overall cost will only increase as the senior population grows—giving lawmakers the uncomfortable choice between raising taxes, taking money from other priorities, or reducing healthcare services.

Better policy decisions today can yield better health and fiscal outcomes tomorrow. Several commonsense reforms can slow the rising cost of long-term care, saving the state some difficult decisions and helping seniors enjoy longer, healthier lives.

Many seniors want to “age in place” at home. Home-based healthcare is less expensive than around-the-clock nursing home care and extended hospital stays. And those who can remain at home tend to be happier and more comfortable. Ohio should make aging in place safer, more common, and more affordable by promoting remote patient monitoring and telehealth visits to augment and enhance medical care and attention.

Wearable technologies and at-home monitors can instantly relay vital signs, detect accidental falls, and alert physicians to minor health concerns before they become more serious and more expensive. Telehealth consultations reduce risks for seniors traveling to doctors’ offices and sitting in crowded, contagious waiting rooms.

Similarly, advances in AI can help diagnose disease, giving doctors and effective treatments a head start. They can also reduce long-term care costs by assisting with and even performing some routine administrative tasks. Relieving staff of menial burdens will give them more time with patients and facilitate faster response times to medical emergencies.

Ohio should also look to improve its nursing home environments and care staff. A larger elderly population will require more long-term care providers to ensure quality care for vulnerable seniors. The state should encourage flexible entry positions at long-term care facilities and ensure that nurses with advanced skill sets can practice to the full extent of their training to provide meaningful care and relieve pressure on physicians. Policymakers should review any regulations that discourage care workers from entering the field or that inadvertently disallow patient care by trained health professionals.

Finally, Ohio must improve oversight of Medicaid spending to reduce wasteful and fraudulent payments for ineligible patients and services that go unrendered. Millionaires should not be receiving publicly subsidized healthcare, so the state should conduct strict asset tests and tighten eligibility determinations before care is provided. Chasing after misspent dollars that have already been paid to ineligible recipients or disreputable caregivers is a fool’s errand. The state’s due diligence should precede payment, not follow it.

Ohio isn’t getting any younger. And the cost of caring for seniors doesn’t show signs of getting cheaper. But taking responsible steps to encourage cost-effective technologies and care options, expand the long-term care workforce, and reduce improper Medicaid payments will help our elderly receive the care and services they need and deserve—at a price that taxpayers can still afford.

Rea S. Hederman Jr. is vice president of policy at The Buckeye Institute.