US: facing aging population challenges
as 77M US Boomers near retirement age

Understanding that fiscal and demographic challenges on the horizon could push the nation beyond its ability to meet the myriad of future long term care needs of U.S. baby boomers, leading advocates and stakeholder organizations for the aging convened today to discuss a comprehensive policy roadmap to ensure the nation's long term care needs can be met in the future.

Harvard Law School Prof. Arthur Miller, CMS Administrator Mark McClellan Join Dialogue on Preparing LTC Spectrum for Impending Influx:

"Our challenge today is to make sure long-term care services are flexible and able to meet the different needs of a modern health care system," said Mark B. McClellan, M.D., Ph.D., administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. "Open forums like this one encourage dialogue between many stakeholders as we work to improve access and quality."

The two-day "Long Term Care Mini Conference" concluded today with official policy recommendations that will serve as the basis for long term care discussions at the 2005 White House Conference on Aging (WHCoA) in October. Held once every ten years, the conference has served as a catalyst for the development and enhancement of national, state and local aging policies.

"In January 2006, the leading edge of the nation's 78 million baby boomers will begin to turn 60," commented Dorcas Hardy, policy chairman of the White House Conference on Aging. "This 'coming of age' amplifies the urgent need for a balanced, integrated national long term care policy to meet the demands of a diverse older population that largely desires quality, individual choice, access and affordability. I commend the planners of the 2005 WHCoA Mini-Conference on Long Term Care for jump-starting a national conversation on how Americans will plan for and fund their own longevity."

Over the next 30 years, the number of Americans over the age of 65 - and the proportion of those individuals older than 85 - is expected to double. Soaring costs and rising demand for long term care services could deplete personal savings and exhaust government entitlement programs. The challenge is broader than delivery of healthcare. There is also a strain on long-term service providers and family caregivers.

Additionally:

Nearly half of all Americans will need long term care at some point in their lives. One in five over age 50 is at risk of needing it in the next 12 months;

Only seven percent of all private industry employees are offered long term care insurance as a voluntary benefit;

By the year 2030, Medicaid's nursing home expenditures could reach $134 billion a year - up 360 percent from the year 2000

Two visits a day by a home health aide to help with bathing, dressing and household chores can cost $2500 a month. If skilled help such as physical therapy is needed, the expense is greater.

The recommendations that came out of the conference dialogue sessions will form the basis of a comprehensive national long term care policy which will be presented to the Policy Committee of the White House Conference on Aging.

Arthur Miller, who moderated the Socratic Dialogue segment of the conference commented, "I'm honored to have been asked to moderate this panel. As an older American myself, I am well aware of the dimension and gravity of the problem of long term health care. It's imperative that our nation come to grips with it."

Among the thought leaders participating in the conference were renowned Harvard Law School Professor Arthur Miller, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Administrator Mark McClellan, and White House Conference on Aging Chairman Dorcas Hardy.

Statement from AARP:

AARP is pleased to participate in the White House Conference on Aging mini-conference on the future of long-term care options for older Americans with disabilities. The nation does not have a coordinated long-term care system or coherent long-term care policy.

Clearly, we need to encourage savings and planning to meet future demands for long-term care. But the need for broader long-term care reform will take extensive public debate, which this WHCoA can serve to spark.

This broader reform will need to: build a strong system of home and community-based services, empower consumers to direct their own care, support family members, who are providing the vast majority of long-term care services, transform our housing stock and community features to support continued independence, and use new technologies to support individual autonomy and control.

America can afford to grow older. We can affirm the dignity and independence of persons of all ages with disabilities if we have the commitment and vision. AARP looks forward to playing an active role in making such a future happen.

Statement from American Council of Life Insurers:

"We are proud to be a part of the White House mini conference on long-term care particularly at a time when there's such a focus on retirement security," said ACLI President and CEO Frank Keating. "Since nearly half of all Americans will need long-term care in their lives -- and the cost of care continues to rise -- we need to encourage Americans to consider how they will pay for long term care expenses as they plan for retirement. Long term care insurance can mean the difference between a financially devastating retirement and one that is independent and secure," said Keating. "We applaud the White House for recognizing the importance of long term care planning and look forward to working with the public and private sectors in helping families prepare for a financially secure future."

Statement from American Health Care Association & National Center For Assisted Living:

"The demographics are startling. With 77 million baby boomers rapidly approaching an age when many will require long term care services, it is imperative that we establish policies now to equip us to provide the highest quality care in the most appropriate setting for the patients and residents of tomorrow," said Hal Daub, president and CEO of the American Health Care Association and the National Center For Assisted Living. "This demographic wave will present new and unexpected challenges for providing and funding healthcare services in homes, communities, nursing facilities or other residential care settings. This forum of our nation's premier long term care experts and thought leaders will most certainly help provide policy makers a framework for taking the right steps now to meet the changing needs of an aging population."

Statement from America's Health Insurance Plans:

"Our nation needs to broaden the health care discussion that has been focused on acute care to one that focuses on the continuity of care that people need throughout their lives. We believe that there needs to be a paradigm shift in the financing and delivery of health care that reflects 21st century realities of chronic illness and our aging population. Given the burden of such financing on state Medicaid programs, we can see no better time to explore a range of public-private partnerships that could make costs more predictable and expand service options for consumers. Through the right kind of policy-making, we can encourage Americans to plan ahead and save for their LTC needs." Karen Ignagni, President and CEO.

Statement from the National Alliance for Caregiving:

"America's 50 million family caregivers are a crucial part of our long-term care system, and the National Alliance for Caregiving is pleased to be a part of the White House Mini- Conference on Long-Term Care," said Gail Gibson Hunt, president and CEO of the National Alliance for Caregiving. "Family caregivers frequently express frustration with the lack of coordination, resources, and information available to them. In short, the long-term care system is not meeting their needs. Their frustration is also evidence of the fact that improvements to our long-term care system over the years have been piecemeal at best. This mini-conference presents an important and unique opportunity to take a holistic look at long-term care and give shape to a comprehensive vision for fixing the system before the age wave overwhelms it."