LTC Bullet: Kudos to CLTC, Inc.

Thursday, October 10, 2002

Seattle--

*** New content added today to the donor-only zone includes "The LTC Week in Review for October 7-11, 2002: LTC E-Alerts #236-#240." Every LTC E-Alert contains some news or information that will help people understand the need to prepare early for the risk and cost of long-term care. If you already qualify for The Zone, you can click the following link, enter your user name and password, and go directly to the latest E-Alerts: http://www.centerltc.com/members/ltc_week_in_review.htm .

LTC E-Alert #236--Source for Aging Research
LTC E-Alert #237--Budget Deficits and Medicaid Woes Indicate Need for More LTCI
LTC E-Alert #238--Check Out CMS' Careplanner.org
LTC E-Alert #239--Nursing Home Staff Shortages in PA and Nationwide Suggest Need for LTCI
LTC E-Alert #240--Aged Drivers, Who Decides?

To Zone In, mail your tax-deductible contribution of $100 or more to the Center for Long-Term Care Financing, 2212 Queen Anne Avenue North, #110, Seattle, WA 98109. Then email damon@centerltc.org your preferred password and user name (up to 10 characters each). You can also contribute online by credit card or direct withdrawal at http://www.centerltc.com/support/index.htm . ***

LTC BULLET: KUDOS TO CLTC, INC.

LTC Comment: The purpose of this Bullet is not to endorse one LTC training and certification program over the others. Let the marketplace make that decision. Our objective, rather, is to give credit where credit is due. We encourage the other premier training and certification programs to follow suit. For example, let's hear from the Society of Certified Senior Advisors (CSA designation) and from HIAA-AALTCI (LTCP designation) about their position regarding the abuse of Medicaid by lawyers, financial planners or insurance agents. We will help to publicize any proactive stance they take against the practice of artificial self-impoverishment to qualify for Medicaid. Our goal at the Center for Long-Term Care Financing is to preserve scarce public LTC resources for the needy and to increase incentives for everyone else to save, invest or insure for the risk of long-term care.

The Corporation for Long-Term Care Certification, Inc. provides training for long-term care insurance agents and grants the "CLTC" (Certified in Long-Term Care) professional designation to qualified graduates of their training program. CLTC President Harley Gordon has given us permission to republish the following "E-Alert" which CLTC sent to all of its graduates on September 23, 2002.

Please notice the invitation to send "ads for annuity or Medicaid seminars that you believe contain information that misleads consumers" to CLTC. They "will forward them with a letter of complaint to the appropriate state insurance departments and notify you of our action." Mr. Gordon has agreed to extend this same offer to all LTC Bullets readers. Take him up on this offer! Send any abusive Medicaid planning ads you find to the fax number provided below.

The Center for Long-Term Care Financing considers this proactive initiative by CLTC, Inc. to be a valuable contribution toward discouraging abuse of the Medicaid program. We encourage other organizations, such as the major insurance and LTC provider trade associations, to take the same strong action in favor of protecting consumers and preserving the Medicaid safety net for the genuinely needy.

Here's the CLTC e-alert verbatim. We have not included the referenced attachments, but you can find them at the web links provided.

"Seminar Ad is Another Example of Misleading Sales Tactics

"The attached seminar advertisement, headlined 'Say No to Long Term Care?' appeared in the St. Petersburg Times on August 27. Grossly inaccurate and misleading, the ad prompted us to write to the Florida Insurance Commissioner suggesting that the seminar and its sponsors be investigated.

"You'll find a copy of the ad and our rebuttal in the attachments to this E-Alert. If you are unable to open the attachments, you can view them on the CLTC site: The Seminar ad is available at http://www.ltc-cltc.com/ealerts/2002-09-23-ad.html and the Letter is available at http://www.ltc-cltc.com/ealerts/2002-09-23-letter.html .

"Should you come across ads for annuity or Medicaid seminars that you believe contain information that misleads consumers please fax them to us at (617)-796-9268. We will forward them with a letter of complaint to the appropriate state insurance departments and notify you of our action.

"Let's demonstrate our professionalism and curb dishonest sales practices whenever possible."