Long-Term Care: Background and Issues (Health Care Issues, Costs and Access)

As older Americans live longer than previous generations, the probability of their becoming disabled and requiring long-term care (LTC) services at some point in their lifetime may increase. At the same time, disability among the current cohorts of working-age Americans, who will soon be the future elderly, has been increasing over the past few decades. This book provides an overview of LTC and an explanation of the nation's complex financing system of public and private payers and also describes some of the major challenges facing Congress as it contemplates LTD reform and whether and how to include LTC in health reform legislation.