Nearly 70% of adults who reach age 65 will need some form of long-term care during their lifetime. Yet most families remain unprepared — financially, emotionally, and logistically — for what that reality can mean. Annual median care costs routinely exceed $60,000 and can quickly climb into six figures.
At the same time, many underestimate the likelihood they may one day need care, overestimate what existing programs will cover, or simply delay conversations about aging until circumstances force them to act. Medicare, for example, is often assumed to cover extended long-term care needs, but in reality, its coverage is limited. Medicaid, meanwhile, typically requires individuals to spend down their assets before qualifying for assistance.
Recommended Stories
As a result, relatively few Americans have taken meaningful steps to prepare for future long-term care needs, whether through savings, insurance, or planning.
None of this should be surprising. Long-term care planning is complex and emotionally difficult, and the consequences of avoiding it aren’t immediate. In that environment, a lack of preparation is understandable.
That’s why Rep. Tom Suozzi’s (D-NY) newly introduced legislation, the Planning for Long-term Aging Needs Act, is so important.
The proposed legislation would establish a national public education initiative focused on long-term care — delivering to Americans clear, objective information about likely care needs, costs, and planning options well before they reach retirement age. The initiative would use both digital and traditional media, alongside community partnerships, to help individuals and families better understand both the realities of aging and the resources available to them.
By normalizing long-term care education earlier in adulthood, the legislation creates conditions for families to begin thinking proactively instead of reactively — before a health event or crisis limits their choices.
No single piece of legislation will solve America’s long-term care challenges overnight. Broader conversations around financing, affordability, workforce shortages, and care delivery must continue as well.
Lawmakers are beginning to explore some of those solutions. Suozzi’s Well-Being Insurance for Seniors to be at Home Act, for example, proposes a catastrophic long-term care coverage framework designed to help protect families from overwhelming care costs and has bipartisan support. Beyond the WISH Act, Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) introduced the Supporting Our Seniors Act, another bipartisan piece of legislation that would create a federal commission on long-term care addressing financing, care coordination, affordability, and support for family caregivers. While proposals such as these might take longer to materialize, they reflect growing recognition that the current system is not sustainable.
Aging is not a partisan experience. It will touch families in every community across the country. Helping Americans better understand long-term care — what it is, what it costs, and how to prepare for it — should not be a political debate; it should be a shared priority.
MALLIOTAKIS EXITS HOUSE CAUCUS IN FRUSTRATION AFTER DEMOCRATS SINK AMERICAN WOMEN’S HISTORY MUSEUM
We do not need perfect solutions to begin making progress. But we do need to close the awareness and understanding gap that continues to leave so many families unprepared.
And the PLAN Act deserves bipartisan support.
Michael W. Shepherd is senior vice president, government relations at Genworth Financial.