Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Seattle--

LTC Comment: We announce the Center for Long-Term Care Reform's "Save LTC Campaign" and invite you to participate, after the ***news.***

*** SPECIAL APPEAL. Here are a few things we ask you to do to help support the Center for Long-Term Care Reform.

*** FORWARD this LTC Bullet to anyone concerned about long-term care. ***

*** DISTRIBUTE our online "handout" with the Center's "biggest hits" by email. Print and pass out the .pdf version at your sales meetings or presentations. Helps you and us! ***

*** ENCOURAGE colleagues to join the Center. Video invitation here. ***

*** INVITE Steve Moses to deliver his "LTC Pep Talk" at your next sales meeting. Video description here. ***

*** BECOME a "Regional Representative" of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform. Responsibilities, benefits, and qualifications explained here. ***

*** SPONSOR an LTC E-Alert ($250) or LTC Bullet ($500) and get ad space on our website and "LTC Blog" at no extra charge. ***

*** WATCH our new virtual tour here of the rich content at the Center's website including full coverage of "The Zone" and the "Almanac of Long-Term Care." Forward the webinar link to others who can benefit from this information: http://www.centerltc.com/Webinars/WebsiteWebinar.wmv. ***

*** PERSUADE your company or organization to become a corporate member of the Center so you can get our publications and "The Zone" for FREE. Details here. ***

*** TAKE our "LTC Graduate Seminar." Book it live at your location; contact us to take the recorded webinar version from October 2007; or register for the next live webinar presentation to be scheduled soon. Hear Steve Moses describe the LTC Graduate Seminar here. Testimonials here. ***

LTC BULLET: SAVE LONG-TERM CARE CAMPAIGN

LTC Comment: For reasons we discuss daily in "LTC E-Alerts" and "LTC Bullets," long-term care financing in the United States is about to change radically . . . in ways that will hurt the poor, the affluent and everyone in between.

Americans used to be able to ignore the risk of long-term care, avoid the premiums for private insurance, and easily protect most of their wealth while the government paid for expensive LTC if and when they needed it. That era is coming to an end.

When? Certainly within ten years; possibly as soon as three to five years.

Smart consumers will get in front of this trend and ride the Age Wave to a happier conclusion. Less savvy people will be crushed financially and emotionally as the toll of caregiving falls more heavily than ever on families, especially wives, daughters and daughters-in-law.

When the bottom falls out of government-financed long-term care, consumers will have very few choices. They'll spend quickly through their savings and then turn to home equity conversion.

The only way to avoid that outcome is to plan now and insure privately for long-term care. Unfortunately, most people are asleep about the risk and cost of LTC because government has always picked up the biggest tab in the past. So, very few buy LTCI.

That is the dilemma we face. And that's why we need a "Save LTC Campaign."

The Center for Long-Term Care Reform's "Save LTC Campaign" will pursue these two main strategies with the following tactics:

1. Expand LTCI coverage: We'll get more people protected privately for long-term care by working closely with financial advisors and LTC insurance specialists.
   1. LTC Bullets and LTC E-Alerts will focus daily on why consumers no longer dare ignore LTC risk and cost.
   2. LTC Pep Talks: Coach Steve Moses will educate and motivate your sales team by phone or webinar.
   3. Watch Our Website Webinar: Your mind will boggle at all the valuable content free and in "The Zone" at www.centerltc.com. Watch webinar.
   4. Membership Appeal: We're reaching out for more corporate, individual and premium Center members. Make it viral . . . Spread the word!
   5. LTC-TV: Check out our two LTC-TV channels, especially the newest one here.
   6. Long-Term Care Graduate Seminar: We'll soon announce a new, live, webinar presentation of this popular 8-hour program.
   7. Regional Representatives of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform: Apply to represent the Center in your local area. Video here.
   8. Regional Representatives' Tool Chest: We're developing tools like query letters and draft op-eds to empower local LTCI advocates.
   9. Spearhead Committee members participate in monthly webinars to strategize and mobilize our Save LTC Campaign.
2. Save the safety net: We'll help preserve Medicaid for the poor by working with Regional Reps, think tanks and state agencies to preserve and improve Medicaid for people truly in need while reducing the program's explosive cost. We'll use some Medicaid savings to incentivize responsible LTC planning.
   1. Regional Representatives of the Center will help us reach out to local media, think tanks and state Medicaid agencies with the Center's message.
   2. State Medicaid LTC Studies: We've conducted many of these state-level studies in the past. States will need this help more than ever now.
   3. Medicaid Liens and Estate Recoveries: We'll show states how to generate large non-tax revenues while reducing Medicaid dependency as I described in this 1988 study for the US-DHHS Inspector General.
   4. Medicaid Income and Asset Eligibility: We'll help states target scarce Medicaid resources to people most in need while enabling others to pay privately for LTC.
   5. "Dual Eligibles": We'll help states prevent citizens from becoming "dual eligibles," Medicaid's most expensive recipients.
   6. Avoid the "Rebalancing" Trap: We'll help states rebalance from institutional to home care without exploding caseloads and costs.
   7. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: We'll help states avoid the "fiscal cliff" predicted for 12/31/10 when "stimulus" funds stop.

All right, that's enough to get us started. Damon and I will be working full time to reach out to you with these ideas, to strategize, to mobilize, and act. But don't wait for us to contact you. Call 206-283-7036 or email and join the team!