LTC
Bullet: Long-Term
Care Awareness Campaign Tuesday, January 30, 2007 Seattle-- LTC Comment: People
won't buy what they don't think they need.
LTC awareness is one important key.
After the ***news.*** ***
TODAY'S LTC BULLET is sponsored by Claude Thau, a Master General Agent
who helps LTCi producers nationwide.
Claude is the lead author of Tillinghast Broker World Individual
and Group LTCi Surveys. His
mentoring skills help you build whichever market suits you best
(individuals, executive carve-out, multi-life, affinity, financial
institutions, referrals from other professionals, etc.).
As a Long-Term Care Partnership-promoter in many capacities,
Claude may be able to help your state implement a Partnership
effectively. Test Claude by
calling 800-999-3026, x2241 to discuss opportunities or emailto:cthau@targetins.com.
*** *** SEVENTH ANNUAL INTERCOMPANY LTCI CONFERENCE
will be held at the Adam's Mark Hotel, in Dallas, TX from March 25-28,
2007. Visit www.ILTCIConf.com
for details and registration. Known
for its outstanding networking opportunities, this year's conference
offers 20+ hours of exhibit networking.
Ten educational tracks led by top LTC specialists plus leading
business. Financial
professionals from outside the industry will share their expertise and
insights. Opening the conference is the Distributors Roundtable.
And closing the conference, the popular CEO Forum is back.
Today's Bullet sponsor Claude Thau will be there.
So will I, presenting the blockbuster findings from the Center's
latest LTC study in Texas. *** *** MILTON FRIEDMAN DAY was yesterday.
The great economist who recently passed away at age 94, and his
wife and collaborator Rose Friedman, show their wit and wisdom in this
1998 interview by NCPA president John Goodman at:
http://www.ncpa.org/avo/visual/ncpa82.asx.
Don't miss it! *** LTC BULLET: LONG
-TERM CARE AWARENESS CAMPAIGN LTC
Comment: Education alone
won't wake the public up to the need to plan for long-term care. Even the endorsement of state governors and high-level
federal officials will not break through consumers' denial. As long as government continues to fund the vast majority of
all paid LTC services, most people will remain oblivious to the real
risk. That is the risk that
Medicaid and Medicare won't be there in the future as in the past to
indemnify them for failing to plan for long-term care. Nevertheless,
although insufficient alone, education and official endorsements are
critically necessary measures to persuade Americans that long-term care
is a personal responsibility and will become more and more so as time
passes. That's why we're
passing on the following announcement.
The
Long-Term Care Awareness Campaign, with its "Own Your Future"
initiative and the National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information
probably aren't news to most of our readers.
But maybe you haven't checked them out carefully yet.
Perhaps your state hasn't participated so far. Never mind. Check
'em out. Get involved.
Use these great new resources.
Of
the 14 states that have participated so far in the "Own Your
Future" campaign, I've personally conducted Medicaid and/or
long-term care studies in eight of them over the past 25 years.
So I know as well as anyone that it takes the intellectual
equivalent of Chinese water torture to get through to the American
public about the importance of long-term care planning.
But persistence pays. So,
put these new tools to good use toward a noble, if challenging, cause. Long-Term
Care Awareness Campaign Own
Your Future Sponsors Centers
for Medicare & Medicaid Services The
"Own Your Future" Long-Term Care Awareness Campaign is a
national initiative to increase consumer awareness about planning for
long-term care. Through a collaboration between the federal government
and individual states, persons who are beginning the process of
preparing for their retirement years are encouraged to include long-term
care planning within their overall retirement goals. The federal
government provides funding for a "core set" of Campaign
activities, while the states provide sponsorship of the Campaign through
the active participation of their Governors, as well as through their
support of complementary Campaign activities. Many
people do not like to think about their future long-term care needs and
therefore fail to plan appropriately. If individuals and families are
more aware of their potential need for long-term care, they are more
likely to take steps to prepare for the future. From a public policy
perspective, increased planning for long-term care will increase private
resources for purchasing long-term care services and supports, and will
reduce the burden on public financing sources as the national population
ages. Campaign
History and Funding The
"Own Your Future" Awareness Campaign began as a Demonstration,
and is now operating as an ongoing program with multi-year funding from
Congress. In 2005 and 2006, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
(HHS) supported two rounds of Campaign activity, with nine states
participating in the initial Demonstration phase. The nine Demonstration
states were Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Rhode
Island, Virginia and Washington. Based upon the success of the
Demonstration campaigns, Congress enacted five additional years of
funding through the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. In
September 2006, HHS announced the selection of additional states for
participation in the "Own Your Future" Campaign, contingent on
each state's ability to pass a Readiness Review demonstrating their
preparedness. Currently these states are Georgia, Michigan, Nebraska,
South Dakota, and Texas. Additional Campaign states will be selected in
the years 2007, 2008, and 2009. National
Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information In addition to providing continued support for the "Own Your Future" Campaign, the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 also provided funding for the National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information, an HHS-sponsored website that provides in-depth information about the risks and costs of long-term care, as well as long-term care planning options. The website, launched in the fall of 2006, can be found at www.longtermcare.gov. |