You’ll Need To Save An Average of $135,000 For Long-Term Care. But Many Will Pay Much More On average, 65- year-olds need to put aside $135,000 to pay for long-term care in their old age, according to a new report by the actuarial firm Milliman Inc. But beware of the average: About 43% of older adults will need no paid [...]
The fiscal 2026 spending bill approved by Congress this month preserves federal funding for most senior service programs. Perhaps surprisingly, the GOP majority on Capitol Hill rejected many deep program cuts proposed by the Trump Administration. However, the measure excludes Medicaid, which Congress cut deeply in a separate budget package last summer. The spending bills, passed four months after the [...]
To the shock of the big insurance companies that run most Medicare Advantage managed care plans, the government has proposed boosting payments to plans by just 0.09% in 2027. That would be a fraction of the annual increase plans received in the past and far below what they, and their investors, expected. Share prices plummeted and plan executives darkly warned [...]
Twenty-five years ago, there were about 35 million Americans age 65 or older and about 10,000 board certified specialists in geriatric medicine to care for them. Today, there about 60 million older adults in the US. And the number of geriatricians has fallen to about 7,300. Perhaps more troubling, it appears that physicians are going into other specialties, such as [...]
Medicare’s new hospital payment experiment, which it calls TEAM (Transforming Episode Accountability Mode), may have profound effects on patients, their families, and providers such as nursing homes and home health agencies. While the acronym signals the virtues of collaboration and shared goals, its outcomes are far less certain. At its best, TEAM will encourage hospitals to improve the quality of the [...]
Our deeply fragmented health system is especially dangerous for older adults, younger people with disabilities, and their families. In an effort to improve their care, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is rolling out several experimental payment models aimed at better coordinating care and, perhaps, saving Medicare money. The demonstrations, described by a growing cacophony of acronyms, work [...]
While Congress and President Trump fruitlessly debate how much the government should subsidize certain health insurance premiums, they are missing a far more important question: How could the US rationalize our eight (at least) completely separate health insurance systems? This maze-like complexity comes at a price. Dividing Americans into multiple risk pools increases health care costs. It means patients lose [...]
When politicians use their favorite buzzword of the day “affordability,” they most likely are talking about housing, insurance, or beef. But they also should be thinking about the costs of personal care for older adults and younger people with disabilities, which is becoming less affordable than ever. And one big reason is the Trump Administration’s war on immigrants. As its [...]
After a government shutdown and months of drama, it appears that President Trump may be about to drop his aggressive opposition to extending soon-to-expire enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies. And by doing so, he may have made it much more likely that 22 million people currently receiving premium tax credits will continue to receive their full subsidies. Preserving the subsidies, [...]
Navigating the highly complex and deeply fragmented systems of medical and long-term care is one of the biggest challenges family caregivers face. How do I find a reliable home care aide? Where is a good adult day center? How can I coordinate dad’s medical treatment with his personal care? Now, new care navigation services are filling the gaps, many offered [...]