“New Study Links MA Plans to Lower Levels of Hospital Visits,” by Patrick Connole, Provider “At a time a growing number of long term and post-acute care providers are either entering or considering entering the Medicare Advantage (MA) market on the risk side, a new report by consultants Avalere Health said their research shows MA beneficiaries spent less time seeking hospital care for certain conditions. The report said MA plan holders with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes experienced significantly fewer inpatient stays and emergency room visits relative to those in traditional fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President,
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“The ‘Big Bang’ of Alzheimer’s: Scientists ID genesis of disease,” ScienceDaily “Scientists have discovered a ‘Big Bang’ of Alzheimer’s disease — the precise point at which a healthy protein becomes toxic but has not yet formed deadly tangles in the brain. A study from UT Southwestern’s O’Donnell Brain Institute provides novel insight into the shape-shifting nature of a tau molecule just before it begins sticking to itself to form larger aggregates. The revelation offers a new strategy to detect the devastating disease before it takes hold and has spawned an effort to develop treatments that stabilize tau proteins before they
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“With little saved, employers and aging employees share same fear: Can retirement happen?,” by Yasemin Sim Esmen, Employee Benefit Adviser “Less than two-thirds of workers are confident that they will retire at age 65, and nearly a third of those surveyed plan to continue working in retirement, according to a Transamerica Center for Retirement survey. Sixty-two percent of baby boomers, the group closest to retirement, believe they can comfortably retire. Confidence is lowest among Generation X, who have been hit during the Great Recession and are starting to turn 50, which leaves them a limited amount of time to save.
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“The 2018 Medicare Trustees Report: Fiscal and Policy Challenges,” by Joseph Antos and Robert E. Moffit, AEI Economic Perspectives “Medicare’s financial outlook has deteriorated in the past year, according to the latest annual report by the program’s trustees. The Medicare Hospital Insurance trust fund is projected to be depleted in 2026, three years earlier than estimated in last year’s report. That understates the policy challenge. Every year, the program relies more on general revenues to cover its costs. In total, Medicare will receive $324 billion in general revenues this year. That will more than double by 2026. Prompt action is
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“The Infamous Medicaid Look Back Rule… Why Does it Matter and What Does it Mean?,” by Casey Sauerwine, Marshall, Parker & Weber LLC “Engaging in trust planning or gifting more than five years before applying for Medicaid can be an effective strategy to protect assets from nursing home costs.  Gifting ahead of time can reduce the amount of available assets an individual will have at the time a Medicaid application is completed.  It is important to talk about trust planning and gifting with your elder law attorney if you are considering going down one of these paths.” LTC Comment (from
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“It’s Almost Like a Ghost Town.’ Most Nursing Homes Overstated Staffing for Years,” by Jordan Rao, New York Times “Most nursing homes had fewer nurses and caretaking staff than they had reported to the government for years, according to new federal data, bolstering the long-held suspicions of many families that staffing levels were often inadequate. The records for the first time reveal frequent and significant fluctuations in day-to-day staffing, with particularly large shortfalls on weekends. On the worst staffed days at an average facility, the new data show, on-duty personnel cared for nearly twice as many residents as they did
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“Gen X’s Deep Dive Into Financial Stress,” by Christy DeFrain, Advisor Magazine “Gen X (born between 1965 and 1979) is now the second largest generation in the workforce today, and this group of ‘latchkey children’ and ‘slacker’ young adults can be viewed as America’s neglected middle child. Bookended by two much written-about generations — the Baby Boomers ahead and the Millennials behind — this driving force behind today’s companies is easily overlooked despite the fact that they are the most committed and engaged at work. Truly, Gen Xers are the source of power that keeps a business together” LTC Comment (from
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“The truth behind long-term care insurance,” by Brendan Williams, McKnight’s LTC News “For some, long-term care insurance has long been viewed, despite all evidence to the contrary, as a nostrum to fix what ails long-term care.  There has been danger in that thinking, as policymakers parsimonious on Medicaid are happy to embrace magical thinking about alternative funding.  But it is worth asking whether it is long past time to put childish things aside, given what ails this insurance market.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Good guy (former Washington Health Care Association Exec.) but
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