November 19 video conference: Own Your Future: The Future of Long-Term Care Financing Options

Own Your Future

The Future of Long-Term Care Financing Options

What if You Could Afford to Pay for Your Long-Term Care?

 

November 19, 2015

 

Training via Video Conference from

Aging and Adult Services Division,

Minnesota Department of Human Services

                                                                              

Presenters

Rebecca Horton, Own Your Future Associate and staff at State Health Access Data Assistance Center, University of Minnesota

John O'Leary, O'Leary Marketing Associates, Consultant to Own Your Own Future

 

Discussants

Craig Roers, Marketing Director, Newman Long-Term Care (tentative)

Lois Wattman, Former Legislative Counsel, BCBSMN (confirmed)

 

Description

On Thursday, November 19, 2015 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, we will hold the third in our series of video conferences on Own Your Future topics. This session will focus on diving deeper into the details of two specific insurance products that appear to have great potential to address the need of middle income households for an affordable and simple product to purchase. These include a “life stage protection” insurance product and a Medicare add-on option.

 

• The life stage protection product is a term life insurance product that provides a life insurance coverage up to age 65, and then converts to a long-term care insurance benefits from age 65 on. It provides protection for the breadwinner during the working years when that protection is important, and then converts to provide long-term care protection when consumers need coverage for long-term care risk. The estimated cost of this product is several hundred dollars per year compared to several hundred dollars per month for some other life and long-term care insurance products.
• The Medicare concept would provide non-medical home care benefits for consumers who reach the age 65 or Medicare eligibility without another way to pay for their long-term care needs. All health plans sold in Minnesota would need to include these benefits. It is estimated that this benefit would add about $30 per month to the premium for the plan. It would provide an estimated $50,000 pool of money to pay for these home care benefits.
• We will have experts available to describe these new products, and to discuss some of the actuarial analysis and other analysis we have done. We will also have experts who can comment on the option in the context of what is now available in the market. We look forward to an interactive discussion with the audience on the pros and cons of these products and the likelihood of take-up among Minnesota’s population.

 

Background

One of the most critical issues facing states as their population ages is the question of how to pay for the long-term care older people will need. Right now, most long-term care is paid for by the public sector through the Medicaid program, after individuals have spent down their assets.

 

As the number of older people grows, this approach will place an unsustainable burden on the state budget and would take money away from other competing issues and populations, such as education and services for the young. Minnesota through its Own Your Future (OYF) initiative is addressing this issue head on and has begun to identify interesting and innovative insurance and financial products to pay for long-term care that would be more affordable than current options for the middle income households in the state.

 

This series of video conferences will provide background and information on the current work of the Own Your Future initiative to reform the system of long term care financing and contribute to reform efforts at the national level. It will include information on the range of financing options that OYF has looked at in our efforts to find more affordable and suitable options for the middle income households in Minnesota.

 

At some point the gridlock in Washington will break and Minnesota wants to be ready with tested and effective new options to move action at the national level forward.

 

THIS REGISTRATION IS FOR THE NOVEMBER 19 SESSION. REGISTRATION FOR FUTURE SESSIONS WILL BE OPENED LATER.

 

Description of Sessions

Thursday, September 17

You may view the session via web streaming up to 90 days after session ended.

This session will present some of the cutting edge research on the current and future need for long-term care being done by a consortium of national organizations that are working to provide good data for all groups to use, so that there is consistency in the numbers. They have just come out with a brief that provides national estimates for current year to 2075 of specific needs for LTSS by gender, income, age, and health status level. It also includes what would likely be the source of payment for the LTSS needed by these older people if current patterns prevailed. Minnesotans are very involved in this work, and we will have members of the technical and overall advisory committee available to present the data and discuss the implications of this data for states like Minnesota.

 

Tuesday, October 13, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

You may view the session via web streaming up to 90 days after session ended.

The second session will focus on the goals of the Own Your Future initiative in Minnesota. It will include discussion of how the work on Own Your Future fits into broader policy directions that the state needs to pursue because of the permanent shift in the aging of our population.

Own Your Future staff from several state departments - DHS, Commerce, Health and Revenue -- have been invited to participate in the discussion of the Own Your Future initiative, why this work is important to the state, what are the key issues about the aging of our population from their department’s perspective and what strategies their department is taking to prepare for the dramatic increases in our aging population.

We will also include an interactive session to get feedback from the audience on additional strategies that would be successful in achieving the OYF objectives, e.g., effective ways to reach out to more Minnesotans with these messages, work with employers, adult caregivers and how service providers can integrate these messages and strategies into their work with families and elders.

We will be sending out discussion questions to each site and will provide a time for each site to discuss these issues within their group and report back. We want your ideas!

 

Thursday, November 19, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon REGISTER NOW

The third session will drill down into more details on the two new insurance/financial products that OYF is focusing on – a life stage insurance product and a Medicare add-on option. We will have experts available to describe these new products, discuss some of the actuarial analysis that has been done and include an interactive discussion of the pros and cons of these products and the likelihood of take-up among Minnesota’s population.

 

Thursday, December 17, 9:00 am – 12:00 noon HOLD THE DATE

We will end the series with a session that includes a consumer testing experiment, where those attending have the chance to weigh in on a few selected products, and share their comments on the criteria they think are most important in choosing to purchase or use one of these products. We will also ask for suggestions on the kinds of additional information attendees would want to have, in order to make a decision to purchase a product and the price points that would be important in that decision. This information will help the OYF initiative move ahead with more formal consumer testing on the most highly ranked products.

 

Target Audience

This series is intended for a general audience, including aging and long-term care service providers, housing providers, advocates, consumers, policymakers and individuals in the insurance and financial services sectors.

 

Learning Objectives

Goal 1    Learn why the issue of long-term care financing is a critical one for individuals and the state and federal government.

Goal 2    Understand the features of several new innovative products to provide coverage of long-term care expenses at affordable prices, and provide feedback to Own Your Future staff on these products.

Goal 3    Learn how these new products could help individuals pay for their long-term care and help reform the way that long-term care is financed throughout the whole country.

 

Pre-registration is required

Each person needs to register through the link provided below. Registration closes at 5:00 p.m. on the Monday prior to the session. By registering, you understand that the session will be videotaped with the possibility of your visual and audio likeness being recorded for reproduction and distribution.

 

Handouts and Resources

Presentation handouts and resource materials will be distributed to registered participants via email attachment 1-2 days before the scheduled session. Print and bring your own copies to the session. Copies may not be available at the site. Those individuals interested in receiving handouts only, can make this request via the registration survey.

 

Cancellation

Video-conferencing sites without any registered participants prior to the registration close date will be cancelled. If you register, but are unable to attend, please cancel your reservation through the web link using your confirmation number prior to the registration close date. This allows others to participate in the training.

 

Certification

Certificates for continuing education are available for participants at the site. Note: Video conference training sessions have not been submitted for prior approval to any licensing board.

 

Accommodations

Individuals with a disability who need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this event may indicate "special request" when registering. Please make requests as early as possible.

 

DVD Ordering

Copies of the session may be available for ordering after the session ends. If the presenter(s) gives approval, you can order copies from the registration page.

 

Time and Locations

The conference will be offered at the sites and time below. Note: sites that are filled are listed as FULL on the registration system and cannot accept additional people. You must choose another site. Additional sites added after this announcement was published are identified on the registration page.

 

        Start Time:   09:00 AM

        Duration:      Three hours

 

Building                                         Street Address                                               City

Anoka County Government Center     2100 3rd Avenue, Room 238                                Anoka

Big Stone County Family Services     340 NW Second St                                             Ortonville

Blue Earth County Human Services    410 S 5th Street, River Room                              Mankato

Carlton County Courthouse                301 Walnut Street                                                Carlton

Chisago County Government Center  313 North Main Street, Room 106                        Center City

Crow Wing County Social Services    Community Services Building, 204 Laurel Street   Brainerd

                                                        Room 31H

Department of Human Services         444 Lafayette Road, Fifth Floor, Room 5137        St. Paul

Fillmore County Courthouse              101 Fillmore Street, Commissioners Board Room Preston

Freeborn County Department of        203 W Clark Street, Room 128                             Albert Lea

Human Services

Goodhue County Government Center 509 West 5th Street                                             Red Wing

Isanti County Family Services,           1700 E. Rum River Drive South, Suite A               Cambridge

Oakview Office

Itasca County Resource Center          1209 SE Second Avenue, Room 157                   Grand Rapids

Nobles County Government Center    315 10th Street, 3rd Floor                                    Worthington

Olmsted County Community Services 2100 Campus Drive SE, Room 243                     Rochester

Center

Renville County Human Services        410 East DePue, Room 121b                              Olivia

Rock County Southwest Health and   2 Roundwind Road                                             Luverne

Human Services

St. Louis County Government Center 320 West 2nd Street, 7th Floor Large Room         Duluth

Stearns County Human Services        705 Courthouse Square, Room 333                      St. Cloud

Todd County SCHA Public Health      212 Second Avenue South                                  Long Prairie

Webstreaming                                  At your computer

Winona County Community Services  202 Third Street West                                          Winona

Wright County Human Services          1004 Commercial Drive, Room 127                      Buffalo

 

Webstreaming

You may view the session via web streaming at the below links. Register for the webstreaming site above. People participating through this method will be provided handouts and a webstreaming certificate of attendance for CEU certification.

 

Live

 

Archive

 

Live Link will be available approximately thirty minutes prior to the start time of this event. Archive Link will be available within 24 hours, but usually the same day if event has ended early enough for technicians to trim and post.

 

Questions or problems using the links may be directed to MNIT Central at 651 431-2070.