The Metlife Mature Market Institute has released its annual survey of the cost of long-term care services, including nursing homes, assisted living facilities, adult day programs, and home care. And the news is not good. On average, provider costs rose far faster than the rate of inflation. The only exceptions were home care services, where costs were unchanged from 2010 [...]
It may be possible to design a modest government-run voluntary long-term care insurance program that is financially viable. It isn't easy, would probably enroll only about 2 million people, and would take some substantial revisions to the program as imagined by the Community Living Assistance Services & Supports (CLASS)Act. But it might be possible. That at least is the message buried in the reams of documents released [...]
After spending 19 months trying to figure out how to make the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act work, the Obama Administration has abandoned the landmark national long-term care insurance program that was included in the 2010 health reform law. But it was easier for the Administration and vocal GOP critics of the program to kill CLASS than [...]
Frail seniors, as well as adults with disabilities, often need help with routine medical care such as taking pills, receiving injections, getting oxygen, or managing catheters. Traditionally, this assistance has been provided only by nurses. But, especially for people living at home or even in assisted living facilities, having a nurse provide this routine care is prohibitively expensive and can lead to long delays in [...]
Hospital-based palliative care programs that focus on patient comfort rather than simply medical treatment are growing rapidly. And for patients, their families, and hospitals themselves, that is a very good thing. A new study by the National Palliative Care Research Center finds the number of these important new programs has grown from 600 to more than 1500 over the past decade. Of the nation's [...]