Financing long-term services and supports: challenges, goals, and needed reforms.

Area of Science:

• Health Policy
• Public Finance
• Social Gerontology

Background:

• Long-term services and supports (LTSS) pose significant financial burdens on individuals, families, and Medicaid.
• Addressing LTSS financing involves complex policy design and political considerations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze policy choices and trade-offs in designing new LTSS financing strategies.
• To assess current LTSS policy directions and political challenges, particularly regarding federal financing.
• To propose a public-private partnership model for sustainable LTSS financing.

Main Methods:

• Policy analysis of LTSS financing options.
• Review of current LTSS policy trends and political landscape.
• Development of a proposed public-private partnership model.

Main Results:

• Current policy trends lean towards constraining federal LTSS financing.
• A public-private partnership model is proposed to cover catastrophic costs and enhance private insurance for upfront risks.
• This approach has gained bipartisan support.

Conclusions:

• The LTSS financing problem will persist and grow, necessitating innovative solutions.
• A public-private partnership offers a viable strategy to navigate political divides and strengthen insurance protection.
• Policy makers face critical choices in balancing public and private roles in LTSS financing.