CenterLight Healthcare Celebrates National PACE Month

NEW YORK, Sept. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- September is National PACE Month, celebrating the impact of the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE®). The innovative model of care allows seniors with long-term care needs to remain living in their community for as long as possible, as independently as possible.

Around the country, 140 PACE organizations in 30 states serve more than 55,000 enrollees. CenterLight Healthcare is New York's largest PACE plan, and one of the oldest such programs in the nation.

With 14 locations throughout the New York area, CenterLight empowers older adults to continue to live independently, at home through a comprehensive, team-based approach. According to the National PACE Association, more than 95 percent of PACE participants live safely in the community.

"This year, National PACE Month is a reminder of the hard work and resilience of the CenterLight Healthcare team," said Tara Buonocore-Rut, President and CEO. "Despite the very difficult circumstances brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, our dedicated staff continues to fulfill our mission and transform the lives of thousands of New Yorkers in need each day."

The Senior Healthcare Model of the Future
COVID-19 was disruptive and challenging for all Americans, but the PACE model of care demonstrated its value as a flexible system of care that can adapt to serve the needs of individual participants. Since the beginning of the outbreak, CenterLight Healthcare PACE staff members have been among those on the frontlines, conducting necessary home visits and providing all services participants need as part of their care. As the country looks at long-term care in a new light and searches for nursing home alternatives, PACE stands as a proven model that is both affordable and helps improve individuals' quality of life.

Pivoting to Provide Critical Care and Services ? Safely
Among the many initiatives implemented during the pandemic, CenterLight's staff also recognized the need to help prevent social isolation and depression amongst its participants. CenterLight started providing online educational and recreational activities in March 2020. These activities are designed to help keep participants active and engaged while staying safely at home. Online programming includes arts and crafts, chair exercises, music therapy, cooking, trivia, and bingo. View the current schedule of online activities at https://www.centerlighthealthcare.org/life-at-teamcare.

"This year, we celebrate National PACE Month as we work to recover from the historic COVID-19 pandemic, which provides a unique perspective to celebrate the original development of the PACE model of care and envision a future where every American will have access to PACE," said Shawn Bloom, president and CEO of the National PACE Association (NPA).

Program Eligibility
The eligibility criteria for PACE include being age 55 or over, Medicare and/or Medicaid only, qualifying for more than 120 days of community-based long-term care services, living in a PACE service area, and being able to live safely in the community with the help of PACE services.

About CenterLight's Interdisciplinary Care Model
Each day, CenterLight delivers highly personalized, culturally sensitive care to thousands of dual eligible (Medicare and/or Medicaid) New Yorkers who need community-based, long-term care services and supports in the home and/or a PACE or Alternative Care Site (ACS). This care is provided via the combined talents and expertise of its Interdisciplinary Team (IDT), which includes, but is not limited to a doctor, nurse, physical therapist, nutritionist, recreational therapist and other professionals, as needed.

About PACE
PACE is an integrated plan that covers Medicare, Medicaid, prescription drugs and community-based long-term care services and supports in the home and/or at a PACE site ? all with one ID card. PACE was established as a care model in the early 1970s, to address the long-term care needs of immigrant communities in the San Francisco area. Today, PACE operates in 31 states and has been shown to help decrease avoidable hospitalizations, comorbidities and emergency room visits, as well as increase longevity. CenterLight Teamcare is New York's largest PACE plan.

About CenterLight Healthcare
CenterLight Healthcare operates 14 locations throughout New York City, Westchester and Nassau/Suffolk Counties and empowers older adults to continue to live independently, at home and in their communities. Providing culturally sensitive care to thousands of New Yorkers daily, CenterLight staff speaks 26+ languages and dialects, including English, Spanish, Chinese (Mandarin, Cantonese), Korean, Creole and Russian, as well as Arabic, Albanian, South Asian (Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali) and more. CenterLight develops individualized care plans, which are carried out by a dedicated interdisciplinary team (IDT) of doctors, nurses, physical therapists, nutritionists, recreational therapists and other professionals working in concert to provide care as unique as the richly diverse participants enrolled in the plan. Learn more at http://www.centerlighthealthcare.org.

Media Contact

Lisa Cesarano, CenterLight Health System, +1 (914) 414-1556, [email protected]

SOURCE CenterLight Health System