“Mind-blowing research that all skilled nursing providers can use,” by James M. Berklan, McKnight’s LTC News “The research into older baby boomers’ housing and care preferences is impactful. It should be able to inform new bargaining and marketing efforts for all kinds of nursing facilities, nonprofit and for-profit alike. The seminal statistic that is being pumped for all it’s worth is this: About 40% of respondents said that they would want to live in a care facility of some sort if cognitive or dementia problems occurred.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): We covered this
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“Video game may help slow dementia progression, address workforce issues,” by Lois A. Bowers, “Elmcroft Senior Living is helping researchers determine whether a robot-guided video game can help slow dementia progression by encouraging older adults to exercise and socialize. The technology also may provide an answer to caregiver shortages, researchers said.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Video games reduce dementia? No wonder we have so few teenagers with Alzheimer’s.
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“Tips to share with prospective residents about paying for senior living,” by Serena Miller, McKnight’s Senior Living “As families and individuals consider a transition to senior living, they may be searching for ways to afford a high-quality place to live. For some, the best solution is to sell their current house and use those proceeds toward securing senior living or long-term care. For most homeowners, however, the thought of selling a beloved home — especially after years or decades of cultivating a life there — is a daunting and emotional one.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term
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“A Legacy on the Land: For Donna Lien, protecting a cherished family property meant rethinking later-life finances,” by Denise Logeland, Thrivent Magazine “‘I love working with Donna,’ Bartz says. Even though they have a 25-year advisory relationship, ‘Donna always challenges me with questions, like how can I protect my estate from income taxes and what happens if I go into a nursing home or have a long-term illness? Am I protected from that?’ … Because the [irrevocable life insurance] trust [recommended by the Thrivent Financial professional] owns the life insurance … it is protected in the event she has big medical or
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“Should genetic test results be used to determine insurance coverage? Debate is on,” by Elizabeth Koh, Miami Herald “As interest in commercially available genetic testing kits continues to rise, Florida senators are considering a proposal that would ban genetic test results from being used to deny or limit someone’s life, disability or long-term care insurance coverage. But the bill, which narrowly passed its first state Senate committee stop Monday, faces an uphill climb as some lawmakers and insurance lobbyists say the potential ban would hurt the industry’s ability to anticipate and calculate future risk.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses,
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“More Consumers Are Counting on Help From LTCI: Bankers Life Arm,” by Allison Bell, ThinkAdvisor “Insurers may be retreating from the U.S. private long-term care insurance (LTCI) market, but more older Americans are hoping LTCI will help them cover long-term care costs. The percentage of older, middle-income Americans who expect to use LTCI coverage to pay for long-term care has increased to 17% this year, from 13%, according to new survey data from a research arm of Bankers Life and Casualty Company. Hope that LTCI coverage will pay the bills has increased even though only 12% of the survey participants said
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“NAIC Developing Executive-Level Committee to Harmonize LTCI Rates,” by Elizabeth Festa, ThinkAdvisor “The National Association of Insurance Commissioners is developing a new executive-level committee that will try to harmonize long-term care rate increases across states, according to remarks from Eric Cioppa, NAIC president and Maine superintendent of insurance. … The committee would try to establish a uniform practice for granting rate increases to LTCI blocks. Issuers of the policies in the blocks say they are struggling to take in enough premiums to support the costs of paying the policy benefits.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care
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“Wi-Fi Joins Location, Price as Top Housing Concern for Seniors,” by Chuck Sudo, Senior Housing News “Seniors entering independent living and assisted living communities no longer expect Wi-Fi to be merely an option in their everyday lives — it must be part of a facility’s basic offerings. And the quality of a community’s Wi-Fi network can be the difference between a first look and a move-in.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): The times they are a-changin’.
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“Could Alzheimer’s Be a Reaction to Infection,” by Kenneth Shinozuka and Dhruva Gupta on March 13, 2019, Scientific American “Last year, a study involving over 34,000 Taiwanese patients found that people who were infected with HSV-1 were 2.56 times more likely to get dementia, but that undergoing treatment for HSV-1 lowered their risk of Alzheimer’s by over 80 percent. Perhaps if researchers seriously consider the role of pathogens and examine their interactions with amyloid beta as well as the role of blood-brain barrier more carefully, then we will finally be able to overcome our current impasse in finding a cure.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A.
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