Mandatory long term care insurance?

It’s fair to say that there’s probably no appetite for yet another health insurance mandate in Massachusetts right now.  (The individual mandate for health insurance kicks in July 1.)  Nevertheless, State Sen. Richard Moore is sponsoring a bill that would make the purchase of long term care insurance mandatory.  Have a listen to Martha Bebinger’s WBUR story on the subject.

To be fair, I don’t think Sen. Moore expects this proposal to move right now; he and others are trying to get ahead of the baby boomers so that we don’t bankrupt the public fisc.  He rightly notes that if long term care insurance policies were more widely held, the individual premium levels would come down. 

Discussion of mandates is all the rage these days on the national stage as well.  For the other side of the story, check out Bob Laszewski’s post on the mandate myth.

Keep an eye on this issue — it will be back.

Update 6/13/07: Georgetown’s Long Term Care Financing Project offers a wealth of information on this topic.  Its most recent report, Long Term Care Finacing: Options for the Future, is a worthwhile read, and frames the case for a public-private partnership to finance long-term care.  (TOH to the Kaiser Network’s Daily Health Policy Report.) 

— David Harlow