Planning for Long-Term Care in America

Elder Care Franchising Creates New Niche

With much of the future of long-term care being at home, it is time to start paying attention to the largest and fastest growing home care organizations.  Here is an article from an investor newsletter about five of those companies:

Elder Care Franchising Creates New Niche.

Much home care is now local and small, but no doubt these large franchise shops will be major players, seeking different market niches for their services.  

For those buying LTC Insurance (or those with current policies), they may want to check to see if their policies will reimburse these providers, and if there are any restrictions.

Provider groups 'appalled' by CMS rule that would trim SNF payments by 11.1% - McKnight's Long Term Care News

Ouch.  Another squeeze on providers who accept Medicare and Medicaid, such as skilled nursing facilities.

Provider groups 'appalled' by CMS rule that would trim SNF payments by 11.1% - McKnight's Long Term Care News.

Providers have some difficult choices.  Do they shift some of the cost of these cuts on private pay patients?  Doing too much may lead private pay patients to look at organizations who accept private dollars only, such as long-term care insurance benefits.

'Combined' Insurance Policies Grow - WSJ.com

Wall Street Journal article about linked-benefit LTC products, such as single premium Life/LTC and Annuity/LTC plans

As they grow in popularity, expect the sellers of these plans (along with sellers of traditional policies) to compete and argue their approach to the market is the best one, with the assumption that these products are, in economic terms, "substitutes" for each other.

A better thought is that linked products are simply another way to fund an underlying LTC policy, and that more people engaged in the planning process the better for both product lines.

'Combined' Insurance Policies Grow - WSJ.com.