long-term care Archives - Page 8 of 26

A Closer Look At The Democratic Presidential Candidates’ Long-Term Care Plans

Most of the major Democratic presidential hopefuls have proposed ways for government to support frail older adults and their families. But they have chosen three very different models: tax credits; universal government-funded benefits; and public long-term care insurance. Which design makes the most sense? Here’s a first look. Tax credits: Former vice president Joe Biden’s plan includes a $5,000 non-refundable tax [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2020-01-27T14:42:41-05:00January 27th, 2020|long term care reform|0 Comments

How The Democratic Presidential Candidates Would Address Long-Term Care

All the major Democratic presidential hopefuls have proposed significant plans to support those receiving long-term supports and services and their families. While this amount of attention to long-term care is unprecedented, the candidates are taking three broadly different approaches to the problem: tax credits; universal government-funded coverage; and public long-term care insurance against catastrophic costs. Most also support higher pay [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2020-01-20T16:56:54-05:00January 21st, 2020|long term care reform|1 Comment

The 2020s Will Be A Tipping Point For Elder Care In The US

As 2020 dawns, the US is about to reach a critical, historic tipping point in its need to care for frail older adults. And we are tragically unprepared. In just five years, the first of the 77-million strong Baby Boom generation will reach age 80—the time when people’s frailty increases dramatically and they begin to need high levels of long-term [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2020-01-01T16:03:19-05:00January 2nd, 2020|Aging, Uncategorized|0 Comments

A Shortage Of Paid Caregivers Is Raising The Cost Of Home Care

The growing shortage of paid caregivers has become increasingly apparent over the past several months. Now, we are seeing evidence of the most direct consequence of that scarcity: The cost of care, especially for those living at home, is rising faster than it has in years. According to the newly released Genworth cost of care survey, the cost of homemaking [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-10-18T13:38:07-04:00October 18th, 2019|long-term care workers|10 Comments

Interest Grows In Social Insurance For Long-Term Care. But What Should It Look Like?

Federal and state policymakers increasingly are interested in creating a public social insurance program for long-term care in the US. Even some Democratic presidential hopefuls have raised the issue, though still only in general terms. That growing interest is great news, and long past due. But what should such a model look like? Designers face a handful of critical high-level [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-09-04T13:27:55-04:00September 4th, 2019|long-term care financing, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Medicare For All Has Nothing To Do With Medicare. Call It Something Else

This week’s second round of debates among Democratic presidential hopefuls is producing a (mostly healthy) conversation about health insurance. But for normal people, much of the argument is enormously confusing. What are these candidates talking about? And how are their plans different from today’s Medicare and from one another? One way to make this debate more comprehensible is to drop [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-07-31T15:26:44-04:00July 31st, 2019|Medicare|0 Comments

Medicare Must Keep A Closer Eye On Hospices And Nursing Homes That Put Patients At Risk

Three reports in the past month have outlined serious problems with the way some nursing homes and hospices are caring for their patients. The tales are similar: A relative handful of providers are delivering poor, even dangerous, care that is being hidden from consumers. But the real story is far more troubling: Neither the federal government nor many states have [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-07-12T13:40:00-04:00July 12th, 2019|nursing homes|0 Comments

Sales Of Traditional Long-Term Care Insurance Policies Continue To Fall

Americans bought only about 60,000 stand-alone long-term care (LTC) insurance policies in 2018, down 13 percent from 2017. Only about 15 carriers were actively selling policies, and five of them accounted for more than three-quarters of the market, as measured by premiums. The grim news was included in the latest version of an authoritative annual survey of long-term care insurance [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-07-03T12:05:24-04:00July 3rd, 2019|long-term care insurance|9 Comments

A Top House Democrat Mulls A Medigap Long-Term Care Benefit

House Ways & Means Committee Chair Richard Neal (D-MA) is mulling a plan to add a limited long-term care benefit to Medicare Supplement (Medigap) insurance. Minnesota proposed a similar plan last year. And the idea would expand to traditional Medicare a recent innovation that added limited supports and services to Medicare Advantage managed care plans. Neal is the second key [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-06-10T16:58:42-04:00June 10th, 2019|long-term care insurance|1 Comment

It’s Official: Washington Will Be The First State With Public Long-Term Care Insurance

Washington Governor Jay Inslee has signed into law the nation’s first public state-operated long-term care insurance program. The Long-Term Care Trust Act will pay benefits of up to $36,500 for those who need assistance with regular daily activities such as eating, bathing, or help with medications. The benefits initially will be funded with a payroll tax of 0.58 percent on [...]

By Howard Gleckman|2019-05-15T14:06:44-04:00May 15th, 2019|long-term care financing|4 Comments