LTC Bullet: What Have You Done for Me Lately?
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Seattle--
LTC Comment: What a year! Did you get value from the
Center for LTC Reform? We'll report today. You decide. Then please let us
know. Thanks for your support.
LTC BULLET: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR ME LATELY?
LTC Comment: What a challenging year!
- LTC insurance sales remain down or flat overall
although most producers tell us they're managing, some even prospering.
- Congress seems on the verge of handing over to
government the remaining private half of health care financing, though I
still doubt it'll happen.
- Long-term care financing is caught in the turbulence
because the CLASS Act may slip through as part of the bigger health
reform plan.
- Government spending at all levels exploded this year
throwing local, state and federal budgets into the red.
- Entitlement mentality is stronger than ever, but
entitlement programs are weak and carry massive unfunded liabilities.
- The long-awaited Age Wave has begun to crest and will
soon crash on us.
- Expect more of the same in the coming year(s), only
worse.
- That's why consumers will need you and your counsel
more than ever.
It's a sorry state (in every sense of the word) we're
in. But here's the good news. If we can't stop government from jumping off
a fiscal cliff, we (you and your Center) are better positioned than anyone
else to mitigate the damage.
If you advise aging Americans about financial planning,
you are your clients' last line of defense against eroding public benefits
on which so many have come to rely. If your job is to protect them against
long-term care risk and cost, then you're the last hope they'll receive
quality care at the most appropriate level by paying privately.
But how do you crack through the veil of denial that
prevents most people from seeing the need to plan early and save, invest
or insure? That's where your Center for Long-Term Care Reform comes in.
Our goal is to help you help more people prepare responsibly for LTC. And
everything we do-- research, publication, speaking, legislative testimony,
and advocacy--is aimed at achieving that goal.
So what have we done for you lately? Here's a sampling.
- Early in 2009, we extended the Center's 2008 National
Long-Term Care Consciousness Tour into the new year with a "Western
Mini-Tour." We covered several more states and brought the message of
rational LTC policy and responsible LTC planning to hundreds more
advisers and consumers.
- Center president Steve Moses published 15 new bylined
articles in LTC provider and insurance trade journals, newspapers, or
other publications.
- Seven of our "LTC Bullets" we're republished as
Gerson Lehrman Group "Analyses," including "CLASS Consciousness:
Problems with the 'Kennedy' CLASS Act"; "We Reply to Washington Post
Blast at Federal LTC Insurance"; "Will Health Reform Include Long-Term
Care?"; "Welfare for the Well-to-do?"; "So What if the Government Pays
for Most Long-Term Care? 2007 Data Update"; "If you think health care
and Medicare are problems, consider long-term care and Medicaid"; and
"Feds Rank Nursing Homes Like Restaurants."
- Risk Management magazine
republished our annual report on government interference in the LTC
financing market titled "So
What if the Government Pays for Most Long-Term Care?" Watch for our
2010 update in January as soon as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services (CMS) publishes the latest data on LTC financing sources.
- Our op-ed in the Providence Journal titled
"Rhode Island Medicaid Has Sprung a Leak" attracted outside financing
for our major study of LTC financing in R.I.
- Our research for the Rhode Island project is
complete. The report, to be titled "Doing LTC RIght" will be published
in time for the opening session of the Ocean State's next regular
session and offers a long-term care financing model for the whole
country. (Special thanks to the many donors who made this project
possible and who will be recognized publicly in our final report.)
- Thanks to VP for Administration Damon Moses's
efforts, we've posted numerous additions to our LTC-TV feature. Check
them out here.
You'll see interviews with many people you know and other experts you
need to hear.
- Damon also directed and produced our "website webinar,"
a virtual tour of www.centerltc.com.
Check it out
here.
You'll find a cornucopia of helpful information in our public and
members-only websites.
- We announced that Steve Moses' April 2000 lecture
titled "The
Long-Term Health Care Crisis: How Can We Solve It?" was included
among "the most important Heritage Lectures of the past 27 years." See
the LTC Bullet
here.
- Steve was also recognized as one of Long-Term
Living magazine's five "People Making a Difference in Long-Term
Care."
- Steve Moses delivered 21 speeches and conducted four
briefings at conferences and meetings throughout the United States on
many themes but with one central focus: planning for long-term care is
more important than ever because of the impending collapse of government
safety net programs.
- LTC Bullets: By the end of this week, we will have
published 61 LTC Bullets during 2009.
- LTC E-Alerts: By the end of this week, we will have
published 147 of our daily LTC E-Alerts in 2009.
- We've covered the "CLASS Act" often this year with
full analysis and criticism in eight LTC E-Alerts, three LTC Bullets,
and in many shorter items.
- We published an important preliminary report on LTC
financing in Rhode Island titled "The Age Wave, the Ocean State and
Long-Term Care" in concert with the Ocean State Policy Research
Institute (OSPRI). Read it
here.
- We don't keep count, but we've responded to hundreds,
maybe thousands, of phone and email inquiries from members, media,
policy makers, legislators, and think tanks. We're dedicated to getting
LTC right.
In the coming year . . . in 2010 . . . we all need the
Center for Long-Term Care Reform carrying out its mission to "ensure
access to quality long-term care for all Americans."
Won't you help us keep the pressure on for rational LTC
policy and responsible LTC planning?
Where else can you get one-a-day mental vitamins like
our LTC E-Alerts and LTC Bullets to educate and motivate
you?
Just think of all the resources the Center puts at your
fingertips:
Review dozens of our articles, speeches and reports
here.
Find over 850 LTC Bullets archived by date and by topic
here.
For one week only, preview "The Zone"
here. (Temporary
user name: free; password: trial)
Check out testimonials the Center's received
here.
Find our membership levels and benefits schedule
here:
It covers everything from individual memberships ($150 per year) to all
levels of corporate memberships.
Still harboring doubts? Get your free trial membership
here.
Thank you for giving us another year to fight the good
fight for our common objective: better LTC for all. Keep the faith. We'll
be there for you as long as you're there for us.
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