Labor Department Study Warns Policy Makers on Long-Term Care Costs 7. USA Today and the Washington Post likewise criticized the proposal. To offset increased spending, the plan would allow drugs made in the U.S. and shipped overseas to be re-imported at lower costs. President Bush has not agreed to remove the Medicare surplus from the budget. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has posted an analysis of what the revised figures mean.
Insurance is one way to fund the cost of long-term care.
Long-term care insurance is dramatically increasing in popularity. In fact, since 1990 the number of policies issued has more than tripled - up to approximately eight million. Obtaining long-term care insurance is usually the best approach when an individual wants the option to obtain home health care rather than enter a nursing home or wants to avoid having to impoverish a spouse to obtain Medicaid. The HHS Office of Inspector General has published its annual Red Book, a compendium of cost-savings recommendations for the Department that have not been fully implemented. OIG also found that Medicare carriers are not establishing consistent drug reimbursement amounts for certain drugs.