Long-Term Care Financing

Abstract

Long-Term Care Financing An estimated 12 million people in the United States currently need longterm care. 1 In the United States, long-term care is often referred to as long-term services and supports (LTSS), which include healthcare and assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs). 2 Some common services and supports include caregiver assistance, nursing home care, adult daycare, home health and personal assistance, and transportation. By 2050, the number of those needing long-term care is projected to more than double to 27 million 3 (Fig. 3.1). Nearly 70 percent of those 65 and older will need some form of long-term care in their lifetime, 4 and 20 percent will need it for five or more years. 5 The annual cost of long-term care today is approximately US$725 billion. 6 As the population continues to age, healthcare costs could potentially reach unsustainable levels. Medicaid estimates that their spending on LTSS will increase six percent annually through 2021. 7 When the baby boom generation 8 begins to reach age 85 in 2030, the spending growth for LTSS will be further accelerated and will represent three percent of the GDP. 9 The percentage of GDP of public long-term care expenditures of the OECD countries is projected to grow from 0.8 in 2010 to 1.6 in 2060. For the BRIICS countries (Brazil,

Does older adults’ use of social care influence their healthcare utilisation? A systematic review of international evidence

“…These concerns are relevant beyond the English context as high income countries contend with how best to fund long‐term care systems for growing older populations (Organisation for Economic & Co‐operative Development, ). The imbalance of public and private funding, private care market failures and a lack of clear policy direction have been noted as particular challenges for care systems in Europe (Mosca, van der Wees, Mot, Wammes, & Jeurissen, ) and North America (Galiana & Haseltine, ). The United Nations also emphasise the societal costs, especially to women, of poor provision of formal long‐term care to older people (UN Women Policy Brief Series, ).…”