“The nation’s long term care insurance companies paid $8.65 Billion in claim benefits to some 280,000 individuals in 2016 according to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): By comparison, Medicare and Medicaid paid 55.7% of $156.8 billion total nursing home expenditures in 2015 and 75.7% of $88.8 billion spent on home health care.  For why government pays so much, private insurance so little, and why it matters, see LTC Bullet:  So What If the Government Pays for Most LTC?, 2015 Data Update, Tuesday, December 6, 2016. Long
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“Our legislation would create a long-term care insurance benefit to help seniors and their families pay for long-term services and support while protecting seniors’ retirement savings and assets. Funds from a 0.49 percent assessment deducted from workers’ pay would fund the trust and be disbursed through a program overseen by a public-private commission. Workers would be eligible to draw on the benefits of the trust after they’ve worked three of the past six years, or 10 years total.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): We lend today’s LTC Comment space to longtime Center friend
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“Home health agencies will be required to become more responsive to patients and their caregivers under the first major overhaul of rules governing these organizations in almost 30 years. The federal regulations, published last month, specify the conditions under which 12,600 home health agencies can participate in Medicare and Medicaid, serving more than 5 million seniors and younger adults with disabilities through these government programs. They strengthen patients’ rights considerably and call for caregivers to be informed and engaged in plans for patients’ care. These are ‘real improvements,’ said Rhonda Richards, a senior legislative representative at AARP. Home health agencies
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“For many advisors, helping clients plan for their potential long-term care needs requires a frank discussion about grim topics. Individuals rarely enjoy pondering what they’d do if they couldn’t feed or wash themselves and needed ongoing care, whether at home or in an assisted-living facility. Yet it’s a vital part of comprehensive financial planning and advisors often pride themselves on guiding clients through it. But reviewing the options — and taking prudent steps to safeguard against loss — can still stoke client dismay or dissatisfaction.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): I expect most
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“The population of the UK is ageing, and people’s life expectancies are longer than ever. By 2040, nearly one in four people in the UK will be aged over 65, according to a recent Age UK report. But the country has little money set aside for elderly care, at either the state or individual level. Many people assume the National Health Service (NHS) can be relied on to provide care for elderly relatives. But while the NHS can step in under circumstances of urgent need, most families have to fund care costs themselves or rely on cash-strapped councils whose budgets
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