Reintroducing a bill to address catastrophic long-term care needs is supported by senior living advocates

Senior living industry advocates are praising plans to reintroduce a bill to create a safety net for families to avoid financial disaster due to long-term care needs.

Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) recently announced plans to reintroduce the Well-Being Insurance for Seniors to be at Home (WISH) Act. Originally introduced in 2021, the bill received little traction at the time.

The WISH Act targets disability benefits funded by an additional 0.6% payroll tax split equally between employees and employers. According to Insurance NewsNet, recipients would receive $3,600 per month for long-term care.

Care benefits would be available to applicants who are of retirement age, have paid tax for at least six quarters, have difficulty with at least two activities of daily living or suffer from severe cognitive impairment, and have completed a waiting period after becoming disabled.

The waiting period would be based on income, with lower-income people eligible for benefits first after one year. The waiting period would increase by one month for every 1.25 percent increase in lifetime income.

Senior Living supports public efforts

Linda Couch, senior vice president of policy at LeadingAge, called the current approach to funding long-term care “unsustainable.” McKnight’s Senior Living that the organization supports the WISH Act and has supported several attempts at federal legislation to fund long-term care, including the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports, or CLASS, Act, the Medicare Long-Term Care Services and Supports Act of 2018, and other efforts that dating back to the 1980s.

LeadingAge, the Bipartisan Policy Center, the Long-Term Care Financing Collaborative, and The Urban Institute are just a few of the organizations that have already published research and recommendations on funding long-term services and supports.

“The need for action is urgent,” Couch said. “We look forward to reintroducing the bill; We supported previous WISH Act legislation and the creation of a public-private partnership to make long-term care, including assisted living, more affordable and accessible.

“The final proposal provided a much-needed safety net for families and ensured that long-term care does not result in financial hardship,” she added.

Argentum said this was fueled by increasing efforts by lawmakers to help more Americans prepare financially for their long-term care needs. Many Americans believe they don’t need long-term care or that Medicare, Medicaid or private health insurance will cover those costs, said Dan Samson, director of government relations at Argentum. In reality, he said, one in four Americans have no retirement savings and 47 million older Americans don’t have enough wealth to afford more than four years of assisted living.

According to Genworth’s 2023 Cost of Care Survey released in March, the national average rate for assisted living is $64,200 per year, which is $5,350 per month or $176 per day.

“During the last session of Congress, we worked with the House 21st Century Long-Term Care Caucus to inform lawmakers about these challenges and advance solutions, including tax incentives and savings plans, and we welcome concepts like Rep. Suozzi’s legislation to provide financial support Equalizing the cost of care, especially for those who can least afford care,” Samson said McKnight’s Senior Living. “We look forward to bringing lawmakers from all parties together in the next Congress to advance legislation that will not only help more Americans meet their long-term care needs, but also enable them to choose affordable, high-quality solutions like assisted living Housing choices.”, at less than half the cost of skilled nursing care and at a lower cost than limited home care services.”

The American Seniors Housing Association said that while it has not commented on the bill, the organization supports the creation of a public long-term care disaster benefit that includes all facilities, particularly assisted living. ASHA Vice President of Governmental Affairs Jeanne McGlynn Delgado said McKnight’s Senior Living that another important benefit of the bill is to stimulate discussion about the aging population and the need for long-term care.

“We know that most Americans are financially unprepared to support not only their retirement but also the inevitable long-term care costs that most will face,” Delgado said. “If the only federal program to cover the costs of long-term care (Medicaid) requires beneficiary impoverishment, other options should and must be explored.”

Suozzi told the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors that he plans to hold a national conference next spring with private sector stakeholders working in long-term care, older adult advocates, trade groups and labor groups to discuss how A public-private partnership could help Americans meet their catastrophic long-term care needs.