As I approach my 90th birthday, I think about what lies ahead. A well-crafted plan between rats and humans can go awry due to the unpredictability of the future. It’s a life situation that we have little control over.
But we try. We took out long-term health insurance over 32 years ago and paid an estimated $225,000 in premiums. If he were to move into a nursing home tomorrow, my insurance would barely cover a quarter of his expenses.
Most Americans cannot afford this insurance. After working all his life, the elderly wants to pass on his wealth to his successors. One of her ways is to make a deal to transfer her home to a loved one five years before she enters long-term care.
As a virtuous person, it is considered morally wrong to pass one’s wealth on to one’s children and expect the government to take care of one’s old age. We believe there should be a better system.
The plan is to make long-term care part of Medicare, with the government collecting money from everyone to care for everyone.
Republicans see this as socialism, so this is unattainable. It also plans to eventually eliminate Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, despite their overwhelming popularity.
Washington State has a program where wages are taxed at 0.58% to cover long-term care. Republicans are trying to destroy Obamacare in the same way they undermined it. At the moment, 70% to 80% of his nursing home residents live on government aid, and the rest must be paid. This is not fair.
A 0.1% financial transactions tax on stocks and bonds could make all these programs financially stable. Do not expect Republicans to accept this plan. They may be for birth, but they are not against life.
