HMOs wary of elder-care program. (health maintenance organizations)

Palm Beach County managed care companies have been surprisingly reluctant to join a demonstration project that could lead to more affordable health care for Florida's elderly population.

In the four months since the state Department of Elder Affairs kicked off the program, not one company has agreed to the agency's terms for providing medical and custodial care for senior citizens in their own homes.

To sweeten the deal, agency negotiators said this week that they may offer to shoulder some of the program's financial risk, which might require legislative approval.

Agency and industry officials downplayed the delay, which they attributed to the project's novelty and a lack of statistical data. They predicted an agreement soon that would allow the three-year project to move forward.

"I always thought it was going to be hard," said project director Lyn …