“Retirees From Market Downturns: New Study,” by Jane Wollman Rusoff, ThinkAdvisor   Quote: “It’s time to stop viewing reverse mortgages as simply a means of last resort for mass-affluent retirees running out of money, according to Phil Walker, vice president of strategic partnerships at Finance of America Reverse. They can be used as a strategy for risk mitigation while at the same time growing investment portfolios, he argues. … Titled “To Reduce the Risk of Retirement Portfolio Exhaustion, Include Home Equity as a Non-correlated Asset in the Portfolio,” the white paper shows how tapping home equity with a reverse mortgage offers the most benefit for
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“U.S. national debt exceeds $30 trillion for first time,” by Shawna Chen, Axios   Quote: “The U.S. gross national debt exceeded $30 trillion for the first time on Tuesday, according to new figures from the Treasury. Why it matters: The nation arrived at the number far earlier than projected due to the pandemic, which amped up federal spending into the trillions, the New York Times writes. The new record comes as the U.S. struggles to deal with worsening inflation. … Yes, but: The national debt was already increasing prior to the pandemic. The U.S.’s budget deficit jumped 26% to nearly $1 trillion in late 2019, increasing for the fourth year in
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“American Seniors Feeling the Inflation Heat,” by Lynn Brackpool Giles, 401K Specialist   Quote: “Add senior citizens to the list of Americans who are starting to experience the impact of rising inflation in retirement. The uptick in the cost of living and other economic factors is taking its toll on seniors, adding to their concern about making retirement dollars last, according to a new report from American Advisors Group (AAG), a reverse mortgage lending service. Economic inflation is the top worry with 66% of seniors worrying that it will have a negative impact on their retirement. And widowed or divorced senior women answered at the highest rate with 72% expressing concern.
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“Nearly all high-touch surfaces in LTC are contaminated, study finds,” by Amy Novotney, McKnight’s LTC News   Quote: “More than 90% of ‘high-touch’ surfaces in long-term care facilities, including handrails and equipment controls, are contaminated with fecal matter and other potential sources of infectious disease spread, according to a study released Thursday. … The researchers also found that surfaces touched by patients and visitors were twice as likely to have high levels of ATP [adenosine triphosphate (ATP), a bioluminescent chemical reaction that indicates the presence of organic material; norovirus] compared to those touched primarily by nursing and janitorial staff or by patients
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“Millions of People Could Lose Medicaid Coverage When the Pandemic Is Declared Over,” ElderLawAnswers   Quote: “While declining COVID-19 cases are good news, the end of the pandemic could mean millions of Medicaid recipients will lose their coverage. Federal law has prevented states from terminating Medicaid benefits while the coronavirus health emergency is in place.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: I suppose if you’re in the business of finding legal ways to qualify your affluent clients for a welfare program never intended to serve them, you’d be fine with the same program supporting
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“Assisted living rate increase grows 4.65 percent — more than skilled nursing but less than home care,” by Lois A. Bowers, McKnight’s Senior Living   Quote: “The annual median rate in assisted living increased nationally by 4.65% in 2021, according to the results of Genworth’s 18th annual Cost of Care Survey, released Wednesday. … The change seen for assisted living is less than the increase seen for home care and more than the increase seen for skilled nursing, according to Genworth. The rate for a home health aide for activities of daily living help increased 12.5% in 2021 to an annual
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“Gap between patient costs, reimbursements hits $11 daily,” by Danielle Brown, McKnight’s LTC News   Quote: “Federal reimbursements for care during the public health emergency haven’t been enough to cover skilled nursing providers actual costs, according to a new analysis by Marcum LLP’s Healthcare Services Group. The New York-based advisory firm on Tuesday released its annual nursing home benchmarking study, which this year used more than 38,000 Medicare cost reports between 2018-2020. The analysis showed PHE [public health emergency] reimbursements averaged $24.98 per patient day in 2020, while the year-over-year change in total cost from 2019 to 2020 averaged $35.98 per
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“Why millions on Medicaid are at risk of losing coverage in the months ahead,” by Rochana Pradhan, NPR   Quote: “The fear among doctors is that the pandemic’s disruption to cancer screenings and other preventive measures won’t just be a blip, although a blip would be bad enough on its own: When cancer gets diagnosed late, it’s less likely a patient’s doctors can successfully intervene, and the patient is more likely to die. Even a four-week delay in treatment is associated with a 6 to 13 percent higher risk of death.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term
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“5 First Looks from 2022 Medicare Advantage Enrollment,” by Laura Beerman, HealthLeadersMedia   Quote: “The numbers from Medicare Advantage (MA) 2022 open enrollment are in. They offer expected results and a few surprises—some of which have already dominated the headlines. One thing is for sure: MA market dynamics are becoming increasingly frenetic as overall enrollment and plan growth sets records.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: MA evolves.                 Subscribe to GoldenCare News  
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