LTC Bullet: Medicaid Minefields Indeed! Thursday July 23, 1998 Seattle-- When National Underwriter, the health and life insurance trade journal, published an article on how to use annuities for Medicaid planning, many advocates of private long-term care insurance saw red. It's tough for agents to sell long-term care protection when the government is giving it away! And they sure don't need their industry publications promoting the socialized competition. So David Rosenfeld, Vice President and Chief Counsel of the
Center for Long-Term Care Financing, popped off a quick rebuttal
to the National Underwriter. To the magazine's To the Editor: Tyrone Clark's article "Minefields With Annuities And
Medicaid" (June 1, 1998 issue) was aptly named for all the
wrong reasons. While Mr. Clark was concerned with the intricacies
of using Medicaid is a means-tested public assistance program. It is
welfare. It is on the brink of bankruptcy and already fails to
cover two-thirds of the elderly poor and half of all poor children. On the other hand, private financing with long-term care insurance
assures seniors of top quality care in first-class settings across
the entire continuum of institutional and home and Rather than counseling readers on Medicaid eligibility, Mr. Clark should consider applying his demonstrated expertise to promote positive alternatives to Medicaid dependency such as private financing with long-term care insurance. Very truly yours, David M. Rosenfeld, JD, MSW
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