“State Medicaid expenses to grow as federal dollars wane in FY 2024,” by Adam Healy, McKnight’s Home Care “As the federal government sunsets pandemic-spurred Medicaid funding, states will be expected to foot the bill to keep Medicaid long-term services and supports (LTSS), which include home- and community-based services (HCBS), afloat. An increase in the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP), which provided enhanced federal Medicaid funding for states, is set to phase out next month as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. To make up for these lost funds, state Medicaid spending is projected to increase by more than 17%
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“A Long-Term Solution To America’s Long-Term Care Crisis,” by Sally Pipes, Forbes “Indeed, Medicaid has become such a major source of long-term care coverage that middle-income and even some wealthy Americans rely on the program to support them in their twilight years. … It is precisely this perverse incentive that Stephen A. Moses outlined in his 2022 Paragon Health Institute paper ‘Long-Term Care: The Problem.’ Moses, one of the nation’s leading experts in long-term care, determined that access to Medicaid and other publicly-funded safety nets ‘discourages responsible [long-term care] planning when people are still young, healthy, and affluent enough to
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“10 Things You Should Know About Long-Term Care Insurance,” by David Rodeck, Kiplinger “While Medicaid can pay for long-term care, it generally only kicks in after you’ve spent down virtually all of your assets. Before then, you typically have three options.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: This “fallacy of impoverishment” shows up in almost every article about LTC financing. We explain why that happens; we refute the conventional wisdom; we show how this mistaken notion is at the root of everything that is wrong with long-term care; and we propose a solution in
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“Brian Blase Discusses Affordable Care Act Enrollment,” by C-SPAN Washington Journal “Paragon Health Institute President Brian Blase discusses enrollment on the Affordable Care Act as the 2024 sign-up period begins and new research on the shortcomings of the ACA exchanges.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: If, like me, you’re confounded by the complexity, cost, and perverse incentives of the ACA (aka ObamaCare), watch this 45-minute interview with Brian Blase, president of the Paragon Health Institute, which recently published our papers titled “Long-Term Care: The Problem” and “Long-Term Care: The Solution.” Brian clearly and
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“Does It Make Sense to Self-Fund Long-Term Care Expense?,” by Margie Barrie, ThinkAdvisor “Planning ahead by buying a long-term care policy means your client doesn’t have to worry about which accounts to spend down and which to preserve, or about the capital gains implications.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: Click through for additional considerations.     Subscribe to GoldenCare News  
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“Why long-term care in America is a long-term problem,” by Patrice Hirsch Feinstein and Tara D. Sonenshine, The Hill “A person turning 65 today, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, has almost a 70 percent chance of needing some type of long-term care services and support in their remaining years. The gap between those needing services and those able to pay for or qualify for Medicaid or some Veterans Administration long-term care services is enormous.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: This vacuous article repeats all the clichés about LTC services and financing,
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“Why High Interest Rates Are Good News for Long-Term Care Insurance,” by Pete Grieve, Money “When you purchase long-term care insurance, it should offer peace of mind knowing you’re covered as you age — but all too often Americans have opened policies only to have their premiums later rise to unaffordable levels. Now, there’s finally some hope that the market has entered a period of stability, thanks in part to today’s high interest rates. Bonds are the primary investments for many long-term care insurance investment portfolios. For years, low interest rates for bonds resulted in low returns, ultimately hurting insurers’ bottom
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“The Affordability of Long-Term Care and Support Services: Findings from a KFF Survey,” by Liz Hamel and Alex Montero, Kaiser Family Foundation “Millions of older adults in the U.S., as well as some younger people with disabilities, require assistance with activities of daily living that may be provided in residential facilities like nursing homes or assisted living facilities, or in their homes or other settings by paid or unpaid caregivers. It is estimated that 5.8 million people used paid long-term services and supports (LTSS) in 2020, while another 1.9 million used LTSS in institutional settings, according to CBO estimates1. Despite
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“12 Ways Long-Term Care Risk Eats Your AUM,” by Allison Bell, ThinkAdvisor “Whether you’re trying to sell retirement planning services, stocks, mutual funds or annuities, long-term care costs hover over your book of business like a hungry, remorseless demon. Lincoln Financial found when it organized a survey of 1,003 U.S. adults last spring that just 35% of the participants with financial professionals had talked to those financial professionals about LTC planning. About 27% of those survey participants with financial professionals said the financial professionals had never even raised the issue.”   LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform: Are American consumers
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“Worried About Long-Term Care Expenses? Let’s Do Something About It.,” by Christine Benz, Morningstar “Given that just 7 million people are covered by long-term-care insurance in the United States today, and there are more than 75 million over age 60, according to the 2020 U.S. Census, that’s a lot of people who are probably either worrying a little or a lot about what long-term-care expenses might mean for their retirement plans. For those self-funders, I like the idea of creating a dedicated long-term-care bucket that is separate from the spendable portfolio. Earmarking a portion of assets for long-term care can provide valuable peace
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