Insurance Leader Praises Senator Kennedy for Promoting Long-Term Care Aid for All Americans as Part of Health Reform

ogarawo.wordpress.com
June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The traditionally conservative insurance industry can come to termd with a Democratic Congress onhealth reform, accordiny to one insurance , who today heaped praisr on Senator (D-MA) for his crusadin g efforts. "He sees more clearlg than anyone the need to reform not only acute health but long-term care, which affects the quality of life and pocketbookxs of virtually every American family," she says. Gott is Chairman of the Boarxd of LTC Financial PartnersLLC (LTCFP) -- -- one of the nation'ds largest and most experienced long-term care insurance agencies. *(PHOTO .
) The Senate Education, Labor and Pensions which Kennedy chairs, is now working on a comprehensivehealth bill, the "The Americaj Health Choices Act," that is expected to includr key provisions covering long-termj care. "I agree with the major thrust, that we need a programk embracingthe long-term care needas of all Americans," Gott "but have concerns on two points." They are -- 1. The "public option" which would create a government-rumn program insuring people in competition withprivats carriers. GOTT'S CONCERNS: "Instead of competing with insurance companies, unfairly I believe, I'd rathee have the government offer new tax incentives tomake long-termk care policies more affordable.
" She pointss to recently-introduced bills, H.R. 2096 and S. 702, that wouls allow LTC insurance to be includedin employer-sponsored cafeteria planzs and flexible spending accounts, enabling people to pay their LTC premiumx using pre-tax dollars. "These bills, with bipartisan show the wayto go," she says. if Kennedy and Congress are determined to offer a public option for long term competing with theprivate there's a way it could Instead of automatically enrolling everyone in the public LTC the government would have peoplde make one of the following the public option, or a private plan (whicj they could choose from any state-certified or the public option plus a supplementall private plan.
" The benefigt amount of the public option is expecterd to be $50 to $100 a day depending on the degreed of disability. "This isn'ft enough to cover all one's care A minimal private planpays $200 a day."" 2. New "insurance exchanges" where people woulds shop for a policy frommultiplse carriers. GOTT'S CONCERNS: "Thiw might be a good idea but could turn bad if the governmenty itself designs andruns it. As an imagine -- before the days of YouTube -- Washingtonj creating a video-sharing service. How good woulf it be with bureaucratic coders and no competitioj to assureconstant improvement?
" Gott might approve, of a plan that offers guidelinesz and incentives for entrepreneurs to creat e insurance-selection exchanges. "There are many complexities that governmentemployees aren't likely to take into account, she says. "Selecting the right long-terk care policy is much more importantg and complex than buyinga car. And who woulx buy their car just by going toa website?? Also, a government exchang would probably send people directly to insurance as the online prescription-druyg system did. This would be like sending people to auto manufacturerw fortheir cars, when auto agencies, with their hand-holding and value-added services, are the right destination.
" In Gott's view, a proper exchange for long-term care insurance would send people to independent agents who know which carriers are soundest, and can advises on the right policy featurexs at the lowest cost. "Witu the online system for choosinga prescription-drugb plan, people went crazy with all the complexity, Gott says. "They'd really tear their hair out witha long-term care choice system. An unbiased advisor is absolutely essential." When rectified with another plan being crafted by the SenateFinance Committee, Kennedy's plan coul gain momentum. But will it find enough bipartisa supportto pass?
"With the righf adjustments, I think so," says "With the tweaks I I believe it would be much more acceptabler to Republicans and conservative Democrats. On the central point she agreees 100% with Senator Kennedy: "We desperately need for long-term care as well as acute healtgh care. About 46 million Americans lack regularhealth insurance, but many timez that number lack long-term care insurance. Only about 9 million have it out of a population of more than 300 and among those atgreatest risk, 45 and older, more than 90% go uncovered." Gott encourages concerned citizens to make theire views known to their representatives in Congress.
Legislators' phone numbersd and fill-in forms may be found at -- . "Womeh in particular should speak up," Gott says. "They're at risk even when they themselves stay welland fit. Typicallyh they're the ones forced into unpaid care givinhg when a family membef suddenly develops acare need." This releases was issued on behalf of the abov e organization by Send2Press(R), a unit of Neotrope(R).