Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Let's ruin long term care

We've had a "long term care" policy for over 10 years. It isn't cheap, but even a month in a nursing home costs more than a year's cost for the policy. It's like any insurance--we've never gotten anything out of our auto insurance either--thank goodness--but have been buying it for almost 50 years. But Obama-Biden licking their chops over the money that's in it already? Oh no! Link.
Posted by Norma at 2/17/2009 02:29:00 PM
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3 comments:

Unknown said...

To have a new government ”long term care program” would just be a boon to the rich and the upper-middle class.

The federal and state governments ALREADY pay for long term care services for the poor and for most of the middle class.

A new federal program covering long term care, therefore, would primarily benefit the rich who can’t qualify for government-funded long term care under the current system.

Instead of another freebie for the rich, the Obama administration should just fix Medicaid.

Here are 3 suggestions:

1. Turn Medicaid into a cash for care program, to give more choice to those needing care.

2. Focus on Care Coordination for those on Medicaid so that they get the best care possible as well as the least expensive care possible.

3. Make the rich pay their own way and buy their own long term care insurance. Don’t make working Americans pay more taxes for a new federal “long term care program” that will primarily benefit the rich.

2/18/2009 10:50 AM
Anonymous said...

Here's an idea that doesn't discriminate between poor or rich. Remove all those who are abusing the system...which is NOT class-specific. My wife works in home health and the other day she came home very frustrated (which is most days.) She was providing rehab (that our tax dollars are paying for) for a person on medicaid watching the local news on their 50" plasma TV! The system will never get fixed if we don't take responsibility for our own actions, rich or poor.

2/18/2009 5:18 PM
Norma said...

Ian, I suspect the TV is a result of the rule that to qualify for Medicaid, you have to spend down your resources. Some people pay off the house, buy a new car, get new furniture, deplete the savings account, so they "don't have enough" money which then qualifies them for Medicaid.

Katherine: except for the Kennedys and maybe the Bush family, there are few "rich" who can afford a $7,000 a month bill for a nursing home over say 5-10 years and not bankrupt the spouse in the process. Especially since Obama considers making over $25,000 a year "rich."

2/19/2009 7:35 PM

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