CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell is traveling across South Carolina to visit facilities for the elderly.
McConnell wants to see how the state is prepared to deal with a steadily growing population of seniors.
He began his tour this week and plans to visit all parts of the state. The lieutenant governor's office oversees the State Office of Aging.
McConnell says he's come to one conclusion since becoming lieutenant governor in March after the resignation of Ken Ard. McConnell says the state must find more ways to keep people in their own homes as opposed to nursing homes.
The Office of Aging says it costs about $1,000 a year to provide home health services as opposed to more than $40,000 in Medicaid dollars for a year in a nursing home.
