Headlines about "Long-term care"
Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.
New Tax Laws May Increase the Popularity of Life Insurance and Annuities with Long-Term-Care Riders
Excerpt: "[The] so-called combo LTC products, including annuity/LTC as well as life insurance/LTC blends, are likely to become even more popular as some deferred tax breaks take effect and pricing benefits become clearer." (Employee Benefit Adviser; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] Legal Alert: Dealing With Long Term Care Insurance Under Healthcare Reform
Excerpt: "As most people know by now, many of the rules governing health plans have been changed -- by The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act . . . . However, not everyone has considered that long-term care . . . benefits are considered 'health benefits' and may also need to be addressed." (Ford & Harrison LLP)
The 'Captivation' of Employee Benefits: How Captives Can Reduce Costs and Enterprise Risk (PDF)
26 pages. Excerpt: "The use of captives has steadily increased over the past several years -- and the list of potential applications keeps growing. During the past decade, many employers have reinsured their employee benefit plans (e.g., group term life and long-term disability) through captives. Although U.S. benefit reinsurance transactions have attractedthe most attention, there have been a number of transactions involving global benefits. Many companies are insuring all or a portion of their medical stop-loss coverage through captives." (Aon Consulting)
[Opinion] Examining the New Long-Term Care Federal Entitlement Program
Excerpt: "Employers who choose to participate have the option to automatically enroll their employees and to deduct the premiums from their paychecks. Individual employees will be allowed to opt out, and those who work for nonparticipating employers will have the option to enroll individually." (National Center for Policy Analysis)
Federal Personnel Agency Opens Long-Term Care to Same-Sex Partners
Excerpt: "The Office of Personnel Management on Tuesday took another step toward expanding benefits for the partners of gay and lesbian federal employees by finalizing a regulation that makes them eligible for long-term care insurance." (GovernmentExecutive.com)
Health Reform Law Includes Voluntary Long-Term Care Insurance Program (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "The CLASS program is voluntary and there is no requirement for employers to implement payroll deductions for this program. HHS is to issue regulations establishing rules for automatic enrollment in the program if an employer elects to do so. BUCK COMMENT. It appears that the CLASS program with its emphasis on community living benefits could be offered alongside an existing group long-term care program, especially one that emphasizes nursing home coverage." (Buck Consultants)
[Guidance Overview] Parsing the New Law on Long-Term Care
Excerpt: "The Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act, or Class Act, the first national plan to help the great majority of Americans who have no insurance for long-term care, became law in March." (New York Times; free registration required)
A Graying Population Being Cared for by a Graying Work Force
Excerpt: "Professional caregivers -- almost all of them women -- are one of the fastest-growing segments of the American work force, and also one of the grayest." (The New York Times; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] Health Care Reform: The Retiree Reinsurance Program (PDF)
4 pages. Excerpt: "This issue of Health Care Reform Insights summarizes the key provisions of the retiree reinsurance program: Group health plan eligibility, Retiree eligibility, Retiree expenses eligible for reinsurance program, Process to obtain the reinsurance, Chronic and high-cost condition programs required, Plan use of funds, Annual audits required, and Appeals and fraud protection. This issue of Health Care Reform Insights also highlights open issues. It concludes with a list of action steps for sponsors of health plans that cover early retirees." (The Segal Group, Inc.)
[Guidance Overview] The CLASS Act: What Employers Should Know
6 pages. Excerpt: "Before embracing the government program, employers will need to answer a few key questions: What are the advantages and disadvantages of choosing the CLASS program or a private plan? Is it practical for employers to simultaneously offer both the CLASS program and a private plan? If not, what is a better choice? What are employees' potential perceptions? Which plan will offer them better value? Note: Because many of the details of the CLASS program have been delegated to the Secretary of HHS to develop, including the fundamental details of premium rates and benefit levels, this analysis cannot be conclusive until regulations or other guidance is issued." (PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP)
What Do Plan Sponsors Need to Be Concerned About Within the Next Year Under PPACA?
Excerpt: "Under PPACA, while the employer mandates aren't effective until 2014, and the 'Cadillac plan' excise tax until 2018, there are a number of plan design considerations for 2010 and 2011. Most immediately, employers may be able to take advantage of the retiree reinsurance program." (PLANSPONSOR.com)
CLASS: A New Voluntary Long-Term Care Insurance Program
Excerpt: "The new health reform law establishes a federal, voluntary long-term care insurance program, known as Community Living Assistance Services and Supports, or CLASS. This brief paper describes the need for CLASS, explains its benefits and financing, and corrects some misconceptions about the program's effect on the federal budget." (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities)
New Long-Term Care Insurance Program Will Provide Flexible Cash Benefits
Excerpt: "A provision in the health care overhaul law signed by President Barack Obama last month . . . . establishes a voluntary, long-term care program that will provide cash to enrollees who suffer at least two limitations in daily activities, such as eating, bathing and dressing. Supporters say the program, known as the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act, will give families greater means to care for disabled relatives." (Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation)
[Guidance Overview] Same-Sex Couples Sue CalPERS and IRS over Partner LTC Benefits
Excerpt: "The case challenges a 1996 federal law that permits states to establish long-term care plans for their employees. The law denies coverage to a state worker's same-sex partner. In 2005, California granted spousal benefits to same-sex domestic partners but exempted long-term care plans authorized by the 1996 federal law." (California HealthCare Foundation)
Many Unknowns for Employers in New Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program
Excerpt: "PROVISIONS IN THE NEW health care reform law that would establish a federal long-term care insurance program shine a much-needed light on the issue of financing elder care. But what's not clear, and likely won't be clear until regulations on implementing the program are formulated, is what effects the program will have on employers." (Business Insurance)
Long-Term Care Insurance Affected by Health Reform
Excerpt: "Called the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act, the program calls for workers to pay a monthly premium, to be set annually by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and receive an average daily benefit of $50 to $75 in exchange if they require long-term care services." (On Wall Street)
Long-Term Care Benefit Also Made Available in Health Reform
Excerpt: "The health reform legislation contains a provision that will make long-term care insurance available to all Americans, who will be automatically enrolled with the choice to opt out. Under the Community Living Assistance Services and Support (CLASS) Act, individuals will begin paying a premium immediately and, after five years, those with functional limitations have the option of receiving a cash benefit of around $50 a day that can be used for medical equipment and home renovations." (PLANSPONSOR.com)
What Health Reform Means for Your Retirement
Excerpt: "How will the new health-care reform law signed by President Obama this week affect older Americans and those planning for their retirement years? There are three main ways. . . . [One is] a new insurance program for long-term care. Starting next year, workers can set aside money from their paychecks to pay for services and supports that many will need in their old age or if they become disabled. The new system is meant to help offset the high costs of home-based care, assisted-living facilities and nursing homes, which mostly come out of people's savings. It's voluntary, but workers who don't want to participate have to opt out." (MarketWatch, Inc.)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Discusses Deductibility of Monthly Fee Paid to Alzheimer's Medical Facility
Excerpt: "This IRS information letter responds to an inquiry about the deductibility of a monthly fee paid to an Alzheimer's medical facility. The letter explains that the entire cost of medical care, meals, and lodging furnished in an institution is deductible as a medical care expense if the availability of medical care in the institution is a principal reason for the individual's presence there." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
CLASS Act Momentum Sparks LTC Plan Industry Fears
Excerpt: "Concern is mounting about the worksite market impact of a proposed government-run plan to provide in-home, long-term care (LTC) assistance to the elderly and disabled that survived a flurry of amendments to both the House and Senate health care reform bills." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
Will New Voluntary Long-Term Care Insurance Program, CLASS, Succeed?
Excerpt: "Both the House and Senate health care reform bills currently being debated1 would establish a new voluntary long-term care insurance program. Called CLASS,2 the new program would be offered to all workers through the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
Long-Term Care: Adverse Selection and the CLASS Act
Excerpt: "A proposal in the House and Senate healthcare reform bills, the CLASS Act, establishes a federal long-term care (LTC) program financed from participant premiums without any federal subsidy. The new LTC program is subject to guaranteed issue, and that, combined with its voluntary nature, subjects the CLASS Act to considerable adverse selection risk." (Milliman)
Long-Term Care Insurance Tax-Deductibility Rules
Excerpt: "Recognizing that government can't pay the bill for long-term care, federal and a growing number of state tax codes now offer tax incentives to encourage Americans to take personal responsibility for their future long-term care needs. . . . The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) included provisions for favorable tax treatment of qualified Long-Term Care insurance (LTCi) contracts. The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance offers this information to help you better understand the various tax implications relating to LTCi policies." (American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance)
The Asset and Income Profile of Residents in Seniors Care Communities
Excerpt: "Understanding the economic characteristics of residents in seniors care communities is important to understanding the demand for these services as well as how individuals are paying for this type of care. It is particularly critical now given the recent steep decline in both the housing and equity markets, which could significantly erode the assets available to pay for senior housing." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)
Long-Term Care Insurance: A Companion Report to the Study of Employee Benefits: 2009 & Beyond (PDF)
Excerpt: "Ownership of Long-Term Care Insurance Among U.S. Workers Has Not Kept Pace With Increases in Concern and Need; Access to Coverage and Misperceptions About Cost of Care Are Barriers" (Prudential)
Why You Won't Be Able to Retire
Excerpt: "[T]he most recent reading shows that 51% of Americans will not be ready to retire at age 65, up from 44% in 2007. Frighteningly enough, that figure doesn't even take into account health-care or long-term care costs. When those costs are included, the percentage of Americans who aren't ready to retire jumps to 70%!" (Motley Fool)
House Healthcare Reform Bill Would Create New Federal Program to Pay for Long-Term Care
Excerpt: "The long-term care program is in the House bill. But it is not yet clear if it will be in the Senate bill being shaped by Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada." (Wall Street Journal)
Long-Term Care and the CLASS Act: The Sleeper in Health Reform
Excerpt: "The Kaiser Family Foundation briefing examines a little-noticed but major provision in two leading health reform bills that would change the way that the U.S. pays for long-term care. The provision, known as the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) Act, would establish a national voluntary insurance program that would allow for voluntary pre-financing of long-term care through payroll deductions and then provide a cash benefit to purchase services. The briefing included a summary of the measure and discussion by two expert panels." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
[Guidance Overview] OPM Proposal of Long-Term Care and Leave Benefits for Domestic Partners of Federal Employees
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: As noted in the preamble to the proposed regulations, a majority of Fortune 500 companies, thousands of smaller companies, many colleges and universities, and other public-sector entities already provide same-sex domestic partners with a variety of benefits available to other family members. Although these OPM proposals do not affect other employers, they should be of general interest both to employers who currently provide domestic partner benefits and to those who are contemplating adding those benefits." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
Actuarial Issues and Policy Implications of a Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program (PDF)
13 pages. Excerpt: "Our actuarial analysis indicates that the proposed structure and funding approaches in the CLASS Act, as introduced on June 9th, will not only be unsustainable within the foreseeable future, but are unlikely to cover more than a very small proportion of the intended population. In the absence of an actuarially sound requirement, we project that the Fund will be insolvent as early as 2021, or within 11 years. The opt-out and guaranteed issue provisions of the plan pose a significant and likely risk that, in a relatively short time period, the program will either need increased premiums and/or significant reductions." (American Academy of Actuaries)
Kennedy's CLASS Act Would Establish National Long Term Care Insurance
Excerpt: "Congress is starting to tackle long-term care through a measure for a national long-term insurance program, according to the New York Times The New Old Age blog. The Times reports: 'Generally overlooked in the debate over health care reform... is the C.L.A.S.S. Act, a bill introduced by Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, that would establish a national long-term care insurance program. The idea has circulated for years, but now advocates think there's a real possibility such a plan will be incorporated into whatever health care bill emerges from Congress. The C.L.A.S.S. Act (short for Community Living Assistance Services and Support, if you're wondering) could transform the way people pay for long-term care.'" (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Employers Perceive a Lack of Interest in Long-Term Care Benefit, According to Survey
Excerpt: "When small employers were asked why they do not offer long-term care insurance, two leading reasons cited were the perceived cost to implement a plan (66%) and a perceived lack of interest on the part of employees (63%). However, the same percentage of respondents to John Hancock's survey reported that their employees are concerned about the ability to fund future long-term care. According to a press release, the ability to afford long-term care for themselves or other family members was second only to that of not having enough money for a financially secure retirement (63% versus 84%)." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Factors Affecting the Demand for Long-Term Care Insurance: Issues for Congress (PDF)
24 pages. Excerpt: "A number of factors have adversely affected the demand for LTCI. The cost and complexity of LTCI policies have been cited as major deterrents to purchasing LTCI. In addition, increased concerns have arisen about the adequacy of consumer protections for LTCI as a result of inconsistencies in LTCI laws and regulations across the states. More recently, adverse publicity about potential problems with claims denials and heightened concerns about the future solvency of LTCI insurers in the current economic environment have further dampened demand." (U.S. Congressional Research Service)
Senate Committee Hearing: 'Boon or Bane? Examining the Value of Long-Term Care Insurance'
Includes written testimony and recorded video of the hearing. (U.S. Senate, Special Committee on Aging)
[Guidance Overview] Bureau of Labor Statistics Data on Employee Access to 'Other Types of Benefits,' 1979-2008
Excerpt: "Table 3 also shows the percent of workers with access to 'other benefits' in 2008. . . . The benefits with the highest rate of worker access were work-related education assistance (50 percent) and employee assistance programs (42 percent). Among the benefits with lower access rates, 2 percent of workers in private industry had access to employer-provided personal computers for home use, and 3 percent of workers had access to employer provided child-care funds." (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Ruling on Long-Term Care Coverage Provided Through an Annuity Contract (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "On May 8, 2009, the Internal Revenue Service published its first ruling (PLR 200919011) considering a long-term care (LTC) rider to an annuity contract. . . . The private letter ruling (PLR) addresses many of the federal income tax issues associated with adding an LTC rider to an annuity contract. In particular, the PLR reaches a favorable conclusion on the question of whether any portion of an annuity contract's cash value can be used to fund LTC benefits paid under an LTC rider issued with such annuity contract." (Sutherland)
House Gets New Version of LTC Bill
Excerpt: "Congress now is considering a second version of a major long term care insurance bill. H.R. 2096, the Long Term Care Affordability and Security Act, would allow long term care insurance to be included in employer-sponsored cafeteria plans and flexible spending accounts. Plan participants could pay for LTC insurance with pre-tax dollars. The bill also would create new federal LTC insurance consumer protections based on provisions in a model developed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Kansas City, Mo. H.R. 2096 was introduced by Reps. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., Allyson Schwartz, D-Pa., Charles Boustany, R-La., and Ginny Brown-Waite, R-Fla." (National Underwriter Life & Health)
Bill Would Put LTC on Cafeteria Menu
Excerpt: "Lawmakers have launched a new effort to help consumers pay for long term care insurance through cafeteria plans and flexible spending arrangements. In addition to permitting workers to pay for LTC insurance through cafeteria plans and FSAs, the new Senate bill, S. 702, the Long-Term Care Affordability and Security Act of 2009, would add consumer protection standards drawn from a model law approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Kansas City, Mo." (National Underwriter Life & Health)
Long-Term Care Costs and the National Retirement Risk Index
Excerpt: "This brief is structured as follows. The first section recaps the original NRRI and the NRRI with health care costs explicitly included. The second section describes the nature of long-term care, the likelihood of a household member needing such care, and the financing alternatives available. The third section explores how the challenge posed by long-term care is different for households of different types and wealth levels. The fourth section models the impact of long-term care on the NRRI. The final section concludes." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)
[Guidance Overview] IRS Discussion of Deductibility of Nursing Home Care for Individual With Alzheimer's Disease
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: The most important thing for employers and administrators to remember about this guidance is what it does not say. Specifically, although qualified long-term care services can be deductible on a tax return, health FSAs cannot reimburse them on a tax-free basis. Similarly, most HRAs may not reimburse expenses for qualified long-term care services. (This is because most HRAs are health FSAs -- meaning that the maximum amount of reimbursement they offer is not more than 500% of the employer's contributions.) In contrast, HSAs can reimburse long-term care services tax-free." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
Cash-Strapped Washington State's King County Faces $67 Million Retiree Medical Bill
Excerpt: "Currently the county is obligated to pay 100 percent of the lifetime medical expenses for participants . . . . King County Budget Director Bob Cowan said the ultimate expense for the county could be $67 million. . . . [T]he retirement program is the only one that included long-term care, meaning employees' nursing home costs must also be paid for, which could some times run up to $15,000 a month per person." (SeattlePI.com)
Senate Committee Hearing on Health Care in an Aging America, March 4, 2009
The subject of the hearing is long-term care services and support. (U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging)
Long-Term Services and Supports as Part of Health Care Reform: Relief for the Invisible Uninsured? (PDF)
15 pages. Excerpt: "The 2008 presidential election demonstrated a broad interest in health care reform focused on access to affordable quality care and cost containment for both public and private-sector payers. So far, the policy debate has centered on the delivery of acute care services, rather than long-term services and supports (LTSS). But there is a strong case that health care reform will not succeed unless LTSS are also addressed. This brief summarizes some views and history about policy opportunities for long term care that were voiced at a January 2008 roundtable and updates the possibilities to January 2009." (National Academy of Social Insurance)
Long-Term Care Premium Tax Relief a No-Go
Excerpt: "Supporters of legislation that would create tax breaks for long-term care insurance premiums will have to wait until the next Congress. A handful of measures died in committee last month that either would have provided a tax deduction for such insurance premiums or would have given a tax credit to individuals who cared for those with long term care needs." (Investment News; free registration required)
DOL Approves Two Captive Benefits Proposals
Excerpt: "Two big employers have received final Labor Department approval to fund employee benefit risks through their captive insurance companies.The Labor Department approved United Technologies Corp.'s application to use its Vermont-domiciled captive, United Technologies Insurance (Vermont) Inc., to reinsure group term life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment, and long-term disability policies. The group life and AD&D policies will be written by a CIGNA Corp. unit, while the LTD policies will be written by a unit of Liberty Mutual Group Inc." (Business Insurance)
Towers Perrin U.S. Legislative Tracking Chart: Health & Welfare (PDF)
25 pages. Excerpt: "These charts summarize selected federal legislation that would affect employee benefit programs. The bills included on the charts are based on judgments regarding the prominence of the issue, the likelihood of enactment, and the influence of the sponsors." (Towers Perrin)
Public Long-Term Care Insurance and the Housing and Living Arrangements of the Elderly: Evidence from Medicare Home Health Benefits
Excerpt: "We provide empirical evidence on the extent to which long-term care insurance affects the housing and living arrangements of the elderly by examining plausibly exogenous changes in the supply of long-term care insurance through the Medicare program that occurred in the late 1990s. Prior to 1997, Medicare reimbursed home health care agencies on a retrospective-cost basis. Then, starting in October, 1997, as a result of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA97), Medicare switched to a system of prospective payments for home health care, which induced state-by-calendar-year variation in the supply of this type of public long-term care insurance." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)
Conseco Inc., a Major Insurer, Has Dumped a Chunk of Its Long-Term-Care Policies Into an Independent Trust
Excerpt: "Conseco Inc. officials have said the transfer of many of the insurers' long-term care policies to a new state-supervised nonprofit trust, Senior Health Insurance Co. of Pennsylvania, allows it to concentrate on its core businesses. The policies were a drag on the company's earnings because they were underpriced and required continuing capital infusions to meet the long-term needs of policyholders." (The Wall Street Journal)
Weighing the Costs and Benefits of Long-Term Care Insurance
Excerpt: "Spending five minutes a day inverted is said to help prevent Alzheimer's, a condition that may result in the need for long-term medical care. So, to help your employees with long-term care issues, buy inversion tables for them and give them five minutes a day to use them. Not exactly practical. A better solution is to consider providing group long-term care insurance as an addition to your employee benefits program." (Employee Benefit News; free registration required)
State Governments Have the Greatest Incentive to Offer True Group Long-Term Care (PDF)
1 page. (Milliman)
Young Workers Must Face Realities of Long-Term Care
Excerpt: "MOST of the nation's 78 million baby boomers are watching their parents grow old. While investigating caretaking options for their parents, they should also be thinking about their own old age and planning how they will pay for nursing homes or home health aides for themselves, experts say. With life expectancy steadily rising, the odds are that they will eventually need some help with basic functions, like dressing or walking, maybe for decades." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Long-Term Care Insurance and Tax Planning - Make the Most of Tax Rules for Premiums and Benefits
Excerpt: "The number of baby boomers in or near retirement is rising, and so too is the demand for long-term care (LTC) insurance. Depending on the age of the insured, such coverage can be expensive, but fortunately for them, Congress and some states have provided income tax incentives for the purchase of certain LTC insurance policies -- called 'qualified' LTC contracts -- in IRC § 7702B." (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)
New Long Term Care Insurance Tax Break on Table
Excerpt: "A bill recently was introduced that would provide a tax credit for long term care insurance premiums. Introduced by Sen. David Vitter, R-La., and called the Long-Term Care Family Accessibility Act, S 3365 joins a handful of others seeking tax deductions for the costs associated with long term care." (Investment News; free registration required)
Long-Term Care Insurance and Tax Planning
Excerpt: "The number of baby boomers in or near retirement is rising, and so too is the demand for long-term care (LTC) insurance. Depending on the age of the insured, such coverage can be expensive, but fortunately for them, Congress and some states have provided income tax incentives for the purchase of certain LTC insurance policies -- called 'qualified' LTC contracts -- in IRC § 7702B." (American Institute of Certified Public Accountants)
Average LTC Costs Hikes More than Double
Excerpt: "The average rate of increase for cost of long-term care has seen a sizable jump in the last 24 months from 5% to 13% depending on the type of service, according to a Prudential Financial study." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
Report: Long-Term Care Insurance: Oversight of Rate Setting and Claims Settlement Practices (PDF)
41 pages. Excerpt: "GAO reviewed information from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) on all states' rate setting standards. GAO also completed 10 state case studies on oversight of rate setting and claims settlement practices, which included structured reviews of state laws and regulations, interviews with state regulators, and reviews of state complaint information. GAO also reviewed national data on rate increases implemented by companies." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
Testimony: Long-Term Care Insurance: State Oversight of Rate Setting and Claims Settlement Practices (PDF)
23 pages. Excerpt: "This statement focuses on oversight of the LTCI industry's (1) rate setting practices and (2) claims settlement practices. This statement is based on findings from GAO's June 2008 report entitled Long-Term Care Insurance: Oversight of Rate Setting and Claims Settlement Practices (GAO-08-712)." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
True Group Long-Term Care Insurance As Part of an Employee Benefit Plan
Excerpt: "A rich long-term care benefit with full vesting, no waiting period, and in which the employer makes all contributions could represent a significant cost to the employer. We estimate that a rich plan would increase the total cost of compensation by about 3% to 4%. However, long-term care is a benefit where the payout is expected a long time after employees are hired. Vesting and waiting period rules for group long-term care benefits would allocate full benefit dollars only to the most loyal and experienced employees, thereby keeping costs down." (Milliman)
Fidelity Study Shows $85K Needed for Long-Term Care Insurance Costs for a Couple
Excerpt: "A 65-year-old couple needs $85,000 on average to cover insurance costs for long-term care such as nursing home stays in retirement, according to a study to be released Thursday by Fidelity Investments." (AP via The New York Times; free registration required)
How Can We Improve Long-Term Care Financing?
Excerpt: "While experts generally agree that the existing system is inefficient and ineffective, they disagree on how it should be reformed. This brief . . . will review several options for change. These options include enhancing private long-term care insurance, replacing the current welfare-based system with a public social insurance program, and introducing a hybrid public-private system. None of these alternatives is optimal, but each has significant advantages over the current system." (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College)
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