Long Term Care in the Political Balance

This article is a compilation of various observations from presenters at the Marquette University Law School's 2007 Health and Elder Law Symposium. The comments by the author connect the observations from the presenters at the Symposium with viewpoints from the various articles in the Marquette Elder's Advisor Volume 9, Article 1. The comments begin by discussing the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 and its history of limiting Medicaid eligibility for elderly individuals who are disabled but are not destitute. The comments also discuss Medicaid planning, cost-of-living adjustments, and long term care insurance.

The comments conclude by stating that the status quo of deprivation and distress may only change through a reconception of intensive, medicalized long-term care.