Description: Stakeholders in a specific state (Minnesota) were interviewed about the potential value -- and obstacles -- of a catastrophic backstop program to handle long term care (LTC) financing needs. The design would entail a payroll deduction which would produce a fund to pay LTC expenses once a deductible period (of 1 to 4 years, depending on income) was reached. This design was believed to encourage enrollees to cover the front end better than done today, whether by private insurance or other means.

Description: The barrier between humans and machines continues to blur, but curiously, this may have been prediction thousands of years ago in ancient myths. This article looks to how some of the early legends are becoming manifest in modern technology, particularly in the area of elder care. From automation, to humanoid assistants, to mind clones will the age of technology bring a new utopia?

Description: In a recent study, nearly all family caregivers (80%) said they “always” or “often” provide emotional support. What if robots could cut that statistic in half? What would that mean to caregivers who have families of their own? This article is my first-hand experience with a companion robot that provides a tremendous amount of emotional support and meaningful activities. Together, they are designed to engage an older adult significantly which can lighten the caregiving burden on other family members.

Description: The article provides a summary of key issues presented at the 2023 U.S. Living to 100 Symposium focused on the interests of retirement professionals and retirees. It provides an overview of the subjects covered. The discussion focused on the well-being of retirees and the development of the retirement system. It is focused on late-in-life issues and having the best life possible during that period. It balances technical and lifestyle issues, with an emphasis on mortality and longevity trends and influences. Some of the topics discussed include the impact of COVID, climate, housing, and age-friendly communities. The Elder Tech Symposium was merged into Living to 100 and includes discussion of a variety of technology approaches to improve lives and simplify support. The symposium recognized that the decisions needed and concerns during retirement are different later in life, particularly as people decline.

Description: The Society of Actuaries Long Term Care Insurance and Health Sections are seeking researchers to author a primer on long-term care insurance wellness programs. The underlying motivation for this effort is to educate actuaries on these programs and provide a useful resource for understanding their benefits, structure and limitations.

Description: Retirement planning generally includes a focus on decisions needed at time of retirement, but it often fails to focus on changes during retirement and additional decisions needed as people age. The 2021 SOA Risk Survey and other SOA research documents the lack of focus on future change. It is common for people to lose cognitive ability and generally to become less able to make decisions, manage their finances, their medical care and their lives at high ages.This panel focuses on communication and decision issues. The SOA has recently issued a decision guide on High Age Decisions. The brief identifies four domains for high age decisions: ·Health, health care and staying healthy ·Managing finances ·Housing and transportation ·Support networks The panel will include a discussion of communications and how we change, problems of physical, hearing, sight or cognitive decline and the challenges created and the four domains in the SOA Decision Brief.

Description: Explore the importance of financial well-being and current efforts to improve it for all stakeholders, including employers, insurers and individuals. With factors like the COVID-19 pandemic and economic pressures driving rapidly rising inflation, dive into this webcast to learn better preparation for retirement security. How will we meet the future challenges of financial well-being? Discover research materials from the Geneva Association, Financial Finesse and the Society of Actuaries Aging and Retirement Strategic Research Program crafted to help clients and colleagues financially plan for the future.

Description: Explore wellness programs and their effectiveness within the LTC industry by attending the Considerations for LTC Wellness Programs webcast. You will experience discussions about design tactics and evaluation processes for programs, as well as discovering ways to assist policyholders achieve a sustainable and equitable life. There will also be a conversation about the current regulatory environment as it relates to LTC wellness programs. This webinar will focus on subsets of insured populations that are high risk of claim in order to properly manage care decisions and ensure unfair bias is avoided. Learn how to test for unfair bias and determine best possibilities on how to guard against this when testing is unavailable.

Description: This study provides valuable insights for insurance companies that are considering entering the market of commercial long-term care insurance (LTCI) in the Asia-Pacific markets.

Description: The SOA Research Institute Aging and Retirement Strategic Research Program and the Long-Term Care Insurance Section are pleased to make available a research report analyzing the need for informal caregiving and its impacts on employees, employers, and other stakeholders.