Healthcare

A recent survey conducted by Bank of America indicates that the majority of wealthy Americans are concerned about outliving their savings in retirement. The BofA survey results reveal that 53 percent of respondents are concerned about making their savings last through retirement, and 59 percent cite healthcare costs as a major concern. A surprising 67 percent of BofA survey respondents said that they did not work with a financial advisor for retirement planning . The survey focuses on...

Residencies in the U.S. have been capped at 90,000 per year since 1997 as a result of Congressional attempts to deal with healthcare inflation . According to a recent Bloomberg article: Last year there were 16,721 fewer doctors than needed in inner city and rural areas. By 2025, the U.S. will face a shortfall of as much as 159,300 physicians. This existing physician supply issue will be stoked by health reform and the possibility of 31 million new patients entering the healthcare system with...

There is a new long term care entitlement in the current healthcare reform bills in both the House and Senate. The long term care provision is known as the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports Act ("Class Act"). The Class Act is projected to run a surplus during its first few years of existence, but will be in deficit within 10 years. This budget projection excludes the present value of the program's future liabilities--in other words, the type of accounting that any private...

Industry analysts view retirement income security as the hot-button issue that will be on the table once the healthcare reform issue has been resolved. Several recent surveys indicate how unprepared most Americans are when it comes to retirement income: A recent BofA Merrill Lynch survey revealed that 45% of those between the ages of 55 and 75 had not calculated how long their assets would last. Another survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute indicates that 70% of people entering...