“Fresh Perspectives” will focus on practical long-term care planning strategies in the midst of a challenging economy.  According to Jesse Slome, AALTCI’s executive director: “Long-term care insurance policies have undergone significant enhancements during the past few years to attract younger, more budget-conscious consumers.  To heighten awareness of these new planning options, the new supplement will deliver information many consumers are not aware of including reasons to start their planning early. The ‘Fresh Perspectives’ approach is intended to also generate interest among those who may have previously chosen not to purchase insurance coverage.”

“This marks the third special long-term care planning cooperative effort between Kiplinger’s and the Association,” said Alex McKenna, publisher of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.  “The most recent educational supplement from the AALTCI, which ran in our May 2011 issue, scored incredibly well in a survey of our readers.  Specifically, fifty percent (50%) of those who read it said that it either changed their thinking about long-term care or they took some kind of action as a result of reading it.  We expect the December supplement to have the same – if not greater – impact.  We are committed to educating consumers about this important issue and look forward to growing this effort with the AALTCI in 2012.” 

Full-page advertisements from John Hancock Life Insurance Company (U.S.A.) and The Prudential Insurance Company of America are running as part of the supplement, which will be included in the December issue of the publication.  The December issue will reach more than 2.5 million readers and will be available on newsstands on November 8. 

In addition, Kiplinger’s will promote long-term care awareness on the publication’s website, www.kiplinger.com.   The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance has posted the two prior guides focusing on long term care insurance costs on the organization’s website.

New research reported by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reveals that of the estimated 55.1 million people with high blood pressure, 29 percent were black patients and 25 percent were white adults.  Among others treated for high blood pressure, 15 percent were Hispanics and 20 percent were other races.

Total costs for treatment of high bloord pressure amount to over $47 billion, including $21.3 billion for prescription drugs, $13 billion on doctor visits and an additional $13 billion spent on hospitalizations, emergency room visits and home health care.

Most people treated for high blood pressure are age 65 or older. This age group accounted for nearly 60 percent of reported treatments. Meanwhile, patients ranging in age from 45 to 64 accounted for about 32 percent of reported treatments and those between the ages of 18 and 44 were just 5 percent.

The federal agency noted that 25 percent of women received treatment for high blood pressure compared to 23 percent of men.

According to Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long term care insurance, high blood pressure is a treatable condition but also connected with a higher risk of needing long term health care and thus creating a greater risk of utilizing long-term care insurance.

“With more Americans living into their 80s and beyond, having a long term care plan in place is more important than ever,” declares Slome.  “Most people wait too long to consider their options because the right time to plan is prior to turning age 65 before medical conditions like high blood pressure are diagnosed or become problematic.”

For more information on long term care insurance, visit the Association’s Consumer Information center that can be accessed at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance/.

The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance  http://www.aaltci.org is the national trade organization focused on educating individuals about the importance of long-term care planning.  The Association’s Consumer Information Center was voted the #1 source for information by consumer interest group rating and can be accessed at http://www.aaltci.org/long-term-care-insurance.

New research finds that many extremely old people appear to have indulged in poor health habits during their younger years. 

“Millions of Americans are living into their 80s, 90s and even past 100,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  The national organization focuses on educating consumers about the importance of planning for long-term care.

“The research is welcome news for those of us who have difficulty resisting temptation,” Slome notes.  “But of course, your lifestyle choices matter so I wouldn’t drop the gym membership quite yet.”  According to the scientists, genes seem to provide an extra boost to those who end up living the longest. 

They note that the genetic component that allows people to survive into extreme old age is probably a very powerful one.  In their report, they explain that genes and hereditary factors even counteract the effects of unhealthy lifestyle choices. 

The study focused on the genes of extremely old people living independently at ages 95 to 109.  Researchers  asked them to recall things such as their weight, height, alcohol consumption, smoking and their physical activity at age 70.  Those participating were also asked whether they ate a low-calorie, low-fat or low-salt diet at that age. 

All the subjects were Ashkenazi Jews, who share a similar genetic heritage.  The researchers then compared the responses to those from a group of over 3,000 people who took part in a survey in the 1970s. At the time, they were at about the same ages as the elderly subjects who appear in the new study. 

The scientists found that our centenarians by and large did not adhere to any specific healthful diet more than the other population did. It was the same for smoking and exercise. Only 43 percent of men aged 95 and older, for example, reported engaging in regular exercise of moderate intensity, compared with 57 percent of men in the comparison group. 

However, there was one interesting difference. Researchers found that although men and women aged 95 and older were just as likely to be overweight as their counterparts in the general population, the centenarians were significantly less likely to become obese. 

One-third reported a history of family longevity, while 20 percent believed that physical activity also played a role in their long life. Others attributed a positive attitude (19 percent), a busy or active life (12 percent), less smoking and drinking (15 percent), good luck (8 percent), and religion or spirituality (6 percent) to their centenarian status.

“Cognitive disorders including Alzheimer’s are a leading cause of costly long-term care each year for millions of Americans,” Slome explains, “and few Americans are taking planning steps in terms of health or finances to prepare.”

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder that damages and destroys brain cells.  The prevalence of dementia increases with advancing age and affects about 30 percent of people over 80 years of age, costing more than $40,000 per patient annually in the United States, according to AALTCI.

The new RAND study is the largest of its type to examine whether living in a poor neighborhood is associated with lower cognitive function.

Researchers noted that their findings provide the best evidence yet that living in a neighborhood with lower socioeconomic standing can have an impact on women’s cognitive abilities in late life.  Researchers analyzed information collected from over 6,000 women from across the United States who were surveyed as a part of the Women’s Health Initiative Memory Study, an ancillary study to the Women’s Health Initiative hormone therapy trials.

The women from nearly 40 locations nationwide who were 65 years old or older and free of dementia were enrolled in the memory study over a three year time period. All the women in the study were given a standard test that measures cognitive function by assessing items such as memory, reasoning and spatial functions.

Researchers found that women who lived in neighborhoods with lower socioeconomic status were substantially more likely to have low cognitive scores than similar women who lived in more affluent neighborhoods.

According to a new study published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology these factors appear to cause the brain to lose volume.  Some 38.7 million Americans age 65 and older reported having one or more cognitive disorders according to the 2011 Long-Term Care Insurance Almanac published by the American Association for long-Term Care Insurance. 

Health conditions increased the development of lesions secondary to presumed vascular injury, and also appeared to affect its ability to plan and make decisions as quickly as 10 years later.  The findings provide evidence that identifying these risk factors early in people of middle age could be useful in screening people for at-risk dementia and encouraging people to make changes to their lifestyle before it’s too late. 

The study involved over 1,300 people without dementia with an average age of 54.  Participants had body mass and waist circumference measures taken and were given blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes tests. They also underwent brain MRI scans over the span of a decade, the first starting about seven years after the initial risk factor exam. Participants with stroke and dementia at baseline were excluded, and between the first and last MRI exams, 19 people had a stroke and two developed dementia. 

Researchers found that people with high blood pressure developed small areas of vascular brain damage, at a faster rate than those with normal blood pressure readings.  They also had a more rapid worsening of scores on tests of executive function, or planning and decision making, corresponding to five and eight years of chronological aging respectively. 

People with diabetes in middle age lost brain volume in the hippocampus at a faster rate than those without diabetes. Smokers lost brain volume overall at a faster rate than nonsmokers and were also more likely to have a rapid increase in white matter hyperintensities. 

“Unhealthy habits come back to haunt millions at older ages,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the long term care insurance association.  “It creates an increased risk of needing long term care in your 80s and 90s a reason why planning prior to retirement is a must especially for those still in good health.”

Slome noted that the reduced funding was the result of a finding that revealed nursing home care providers have been paid more than $2 billion above federal projections since a new payment system took effect late last year.

“Nursing homes have become dependent on government payments from both Medicare and Medicaid,” Slome told a group of consumers on a call today. “These taxpayer-supported programs just can no longer foot the billions of dollars and we fully expect government coverage for many such programs will be especially cut for middle income and affluent individuals in the form of more cost-sharing or reduced benefits.”

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Donald M. Berwick, M.D. said the adjustments are part of an effort to pay skilled care operators “properly” in the next fiscal year.

The recalibration will result in a reduction to skilled nursing facility payments of $4.47 billion or 12.6%, according to CMS. However, that drops to an 11.1% cut when offsetting increases are factored in, Slome explains. “Less money will ultimately result in poorer care and we’ll be facing a society where those with means will be able to pay for care and others will be forced to depend on whatever taxpayer-paid benefits are available at the time.”

“We have long said that aging baby boomers who fail to plan for the risk of needing long-term care will wake up to find out their options are seriously limited,” Slome added. “A failure to plan is simply a plan for failure.” The Association director reports that sales of long-term care insurance are increasing in 2011. “In spite of a difficult economy, more Americans realize they had better take some action while they can still health qualify for this protection.”

A new report issued by the American Heart Association explains the link.  Cognitive impairments are also known as dementia and include difficulty with thinking, reasoning and memory.  They noted the impairment can be caused by vascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, a combination of both and other causes.

Medical experts explain that atherosclerosis is a build- up of plaque in the arteries associated with elevated blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking and other risk factors.   According to the study, when it restricts or blocks blood flow to the brain, it is called cerebrovascular disease, which can result in vascular cognitive impairment, explains Jesse Slome, director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  “Cognitive disorders including Alzheimer’s are the leading cause of costly long-term care for millions of Americans,” Slome explains, “and few are taking steps in terms of health or finances to prepare.”

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disorder that damages and destroys brain cells.  The medical experts reported that cerebrovascular disease and Alzheimer’s disease may work together to cause cognitive impairment and the mixed disorder may be the most common type of dementia in older persons.

The prevalence of dementia increases with advancing age and affects about 30 percent of people over 80 years of age, costing more than $40,000 per patient annually in the United States, according to AALTCI.

Treating risk factors for heart disease and stroke with lifestyle changes and medical management may prevent or slow the development of dementia in some people, the report’s authors noted.  Generally speaking, what is good for the heart is good for the brain they noted. 

Reducing high blood pressure is recommended to reduce the risk of vascular cognitive impairment. High blood pressure in mid-life may be an important risk factor for cognitive decline later in life.  In addition, smoking cessation could lessen the risk of vascular cognitive impairment.

According to a new report by AARP, family members providing caregiver services for free is good for society.  But the researchers report that they need a lot more help.

“That could be the understatement of the year,” declares Jesse Slome, executive director of the Los Angeles-based American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  “Caregivers are the most under appreciated people in the country.  Well beyond the financial sacrifice, the emotional toll can not be calculated.” 

Lynn Feinberg, who co-authored the AARP study, says modern family caregiving is incredibly stressful.

“The burden on families is huge,” Feinberg says. “While families are stepping up to the plate and make this contribution to society, the cost to their own health and financial security is huge.” 

The AARP study found that caregivers who reduce work hours lose hundreds of thousands of dollars in income over a lifetime.   The researchers found that caregivers are also more prone to depression, physical ailments and social isolation. 

In 2009, about 42.1 million family caregivers in the U.S. provided care to an adult with limitations in daily activities at any given point in time, and about 61.6 million provided care at some time during the year.  

“Caregiver burn out is common and it will only grow as the huge wave of baby boomers ages,” Slome adds.  “Boomers have fewer adult children available to provide free care and high divorce rates make it more likely that aging boomers will be living alone when care is needed.”

The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance called for increased consumer education.  “This is a new issue facing Americans and widespread education regarding planning options is necessary,” Slome states.  “Without planning, millions will turn to already strapped government programs like Medicare and Medicaid and millions will face no other option but to place someone in a nursing home, which is what nobody wants.” 

Last week, the Obama administration joined labor groups calling for the creation of 2 million more jobs in home health care, plus a new visa for immigrants willing to enter the field.  “That’s a good start but home care services can be very expensive and government programs will be increasingly limited in terms of available funds,” Slome explains.  “It’s important for people to either save for this contingency or have some limited long-term care insurance protection to cover costs should the need arise.”

The study conducted by Canadian scientists found more dramatic evidence that those who have spoken two or more languages consistently over many years experienced a delay in the onset of their symptoms by as much as five years. 

“We are not claiming that bilingualism in any way prevents Alzheimer’s or other dementias, but it may contribute to cognitive reserve in the brain which appears to delay the onset of Alzheimer’s symptoms for quite some time,” said Dr. Craik, lead investigator and co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Memory. 

The brains of people who speak two languages still show deterioration from Alzheimer’s pathology; however, their special ability with two languages seems to equip them with compensatory skills to hold back the tell-tale symptoms of Alzheimer’s, such as memory loss, confusion, and difficulties with problem-solving and planning. 

Observations were made on patients diagnosed with probable Alzheimer’s from 2007 to 2009. The patients’ date of diagnosis and age of onset of cognitive impairment were recorded along with information on occupational history, education and language history (i.e. fluency in English and any other languages). 

The researchers found that bilingual patients had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s 4.3 years later and had reported the onset of symptoms five years later than the monolingual patients. The groups were equivalent on measures of cognitive and occupational level, there was no apparent effect of immigration status, and there were no gender differences. 

According to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance, the current study adds to mounting scientific evidence that lifestyle factors – such as regular cardiovascular exercise, a healthy diet, and speaking more than one language – can play a central role in how the brain copes with age-related cognitive decline and diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

The study was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Alzheimer’s Society of Canada.

According to a report published today, two companies, Gentiva Health Services and Amedisys are among the providers of at-home health care to receive lower Medicare payments next year under U.S. government changes to the program. 

A 4.89 percent reduction in home health spending for the elderly is among annual modifications in Medicare affecting hospitals, doctors and providers in the United States. Most rates take effect in January, though payments for doctors start to drop Dec. 1, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a statement this week.

“Cuts are consistent with a need to reduce expenditures at the Federal level,” explains Jesse Slome, executive director of the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.  “The recent election showed that the populace doesn’t want the government borrowing and spending money it doesn’t have.  It’s very likely more cuts will be coming.”

A panel that advised Congress on Medicare issues found in 2008 that home health agencies were making 17 percent profits on their Medicare business. 

“If you are in your 50s and counting on Medicare to look the same when you qualify for benefits, you are likely to be surprised,” concludes Slome.