“SNF occupancy continues to hit new lows, NIC report shows,” by Emily Mongan, McKnight’s LTC News “Skilled nursing facility occupancy dropped to 81.7% — its lowest point in five years — in the second quarter of 2017, according to a report released Thursday by the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care. . . . Medicaid mix, on the other hand, increased to nearly peak levels, at 65.9%, the report found.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Can Medicaid save nursing homes while paying less than the cost of care? When you’re losing
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“How to cope with health care costs in retirement,” by Steve Vernon, CBS MoneyWatch “Long-term care is the wild card in your retirement planning. A lengthy stay in an assisted living facility or nursing home can quickly drain your retirement savings, even if you have substantial savings in an HSA, 401(k) or IRA. Ideally, you want to develop a thoughtful strategy to protect yourself and your family against potentially ruinous long-term care expenses, including some combination of: Buying long-term care insurance Holding home equity in reserve Taking out a reverse mortgage line of credit and holding it in reserve for
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“Why Home Care Costs Too Much,” by Paul Osterman, Wall Street Journal “There are two million home health aides in the U.S. They spend more time with the elderly and disabled than anyone else, and their skills are essential to their clients’ quality of life. Yet these aides are poorly trained, and their national median wage is only a smidgen more than $10 an hour. The reason? State regulations—in particular, Nurse Practice Acts—require registered nurses to perform even routine home-care tasks like administering eyedrops.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Over-regulation is a problem,
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“James Glickman to Lead Society of Actuaries,” by Allison Bell, ThinkAdvisor “Members of the Society of Actuaries have picked James Glickman to be the group’s 2017-2018 president-elect. Glickman is the president of LifeCare Assurance Company, a Woodland Hills, California-based long-term care insurance reinsurer.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Congratulations to Jim Glickman. The Center for Long-Term Care Reform endorsed him for this position. Jim’s dedication to long-term care financing, his professional experience as a long-term care insurance pioneer, and his leadership of the Inter-Company Long-Term Care Insurance Conference distinguish him and prepared him
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“Three Ways to Protect your Assets from Nursing Home Costs,” by Elizabeth White, Marshall, Parker & Weber, LLC “Medicaid eligibility rules do not count certain assets such as a home, one vehicle, and personal effects. Therefore, in appropriate cases a community spouse might take money from countable savings to buy a more expensive home; repair or improve an existing home; or buy a new car, new household furnishings, or personal effects. Medicaid rules do not restrict spending countable assets on non-countable ones of equivalent value. Money spent on non-countable assets needed for the community spouse’s use can accelerate Medicaid qualification.”
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Ending Alzheimer’s by Crowdsourcing Innovations Washington, DC/ San Francisco, CA/ (September 7, 2017) – Frustrated by the absence of public urgency and funding to stop Alzheimer’s—and the slow pace of science—a world-class team of scientists and advocates are joining forces to globally crowdsource a new 21st century approach to leapfrog scientific progress and overcome many of the obstacles to stopping this horrific disease. The call to discover breakthrough new technologies for brain health is intended to activate interest from a broad spectrum of expert and lay innovators worldwide—from fields as wide-ranging as artificial intelligence, bio-technology, precision pharmaceuticals, physics, video games
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“Report: Nearly 20% of SNF nursing assistants live below poverty line,” by Emily Mongan, McKnight’s LTC News “Close to 20% of nursing home assistants are living below the federal poverty line, a result of low wages and part-time positions, according to a new report. The Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute report noted wages for these workers had ‘barely kept up with inflation’ over the past decade. The average hourly wage for a direct care worker was $12.34 in 2016, compared to $12.35 in 2006, the report found. Comparatively, 7% of workers across all industries live below the poverty line, the PHI data
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