[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 133 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 133


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 16, 2007

Received and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
                                Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
  Supporting the goals and ideals of a Long-Term Care Awareness Week.

Whereas the Department of Health and Human Services has reported that 
        approximately 60 percent of individuals who are over the age of 65 will 
        need some kind of long-term care services and at some point more than 40 
        percent of such individuals will require nursing home care;
Whereas in 2005 the Government Accountability Office projected that by 2040 the 
        number of individuals in

              

 the age group of individuals who are 85 years of age or older, which it 
finds is the age group most likely to require long-term care services, is 
projected to increase more than 250 percent from 4,300,000 individuals in 
2000 to 15,400,000 individuals;

Whereas the Internet site of the National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care 
        Information notes that the Medicare program does not generally pay for 
        most long-term care services that are needed and that the Medicare 
        program pays for skilled nursing facility services only after a recent 
        hospital stay, that Medicare beneficiaries generally pay more than $118 
        in daily coinsurance beginning on the 21st day of coverage and coverage 
        ends after 100 days, and that the Medicare program does not cover a stay 
        in an assisted living facility or adult day care;
Whereas an AARP study in 2006 found that 59 percent of people in the United 
        States who are 45 years of age or older overestimated the level of 
        coverage under the Medicare program for nursing home care and more than 
        half of such people who are 45 years of age or older indicate they 
        believe such program provides coverage for assisted living, which it 
        does not;
Whereas the 2006 AARP study concludes that given the already high costs related 
        to long-term care and the projected growth in the size of the older 
        population in future years, it is essential for people in the United 
        States to learn more about the costs of long term care, about ways to 
        prepare for and pay for long term care, and State and community 
        resources that are available to assist in these challenges;
Whereas the Government Accountability Office has reported that broad-based 
        misperceptions regarding the Medicare program's level of long-term care 
        coverage significantly contributes to the lack of personal preparation 
        of people in the United States for the financing of long term care and 
        advises that the government can play a significant part in enhancing 
        personal preparedness by educating people in the United States about the 
        scope of coverage of long-term care under public programs such as the 
        Medicare program;
Whereas people in the United States have a right to know what long-term care 
        coverage is available to them so that they are able to make informed 
        retirement choices;
Whereas the first phase of the Department of Health and Human Service's pilot 
        program to raise awareness regarding planning for long-term care 
        obtained a less than 8 percent response rate by consumers requesting 
        information in selected States;
Whereas in 2002 the Government Accountability Office reported that less than 10 
        percent of the elderly population in the United States and a lower 
        percentage of those aged 55 to 64 years of age in the United States have 
        purchased long-term care insurance;
Whereas the Department of Commerce indicates that savings as a percentage of 
        after tax income declined from approximately eight percent in 1990 to 
        less than zero since 2005;
Whereas in 2005 the Government Accountability Office reported that spending on 
        long-term care services solely for the elderly is projected to grow at 
        least two-and-a-half times and could grow almost four-fold to $379 
        billion in 2050;
Whereas the Government Accountability Office has reported that many people in 
        the United States have neared impoverishment by depleting their assets 
        to pay the significant costs of their long-term care;
Whereas AARP reports that an estimated 44,400,000 individuals who are 18 years 
        of age or older provide unpaid care to another adult and others have 
        estimated the value of such unpaid services to be approximately $257 
        billion annually;
Whereas advance planning by family members will help to protect caregivers' 
        health, financial security, and quality of life;
Whereas our Nation's long term care challenges will significantly impact women, 
        who make up more than 58 percent of people in the United States who are 
        65 years of age and older, and greater than two-thirds of people in the 
        United States who are 85 years of age and older;
Whereas encouraging people in the United States to anticipate and plan for their 
        future long-term care needs will help them achieve greater health and 
        financial security, as well as greater independence, choice, and control 
        over the services they need in the setting of their choice; and
Whereas a long term care awareness week has been observed during the first full 
        week in November, which in 2007 will be the week of November 4th through 
        10th: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) supports the goals and ideals of a Long-Term Care 
        Awareness Week;
            (2) encourages the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
        to continue working to educate people in the United States 
        about long-term care; and
            (3) urges the people of the United States to recognize such 
        a week as an opportunity to learn more about the potential 
        risks and costs associated with long-term care and the options 
        available to help meet their long-term care needs.

            Passed the House of Representatives October 15, 2007.

            Attest:

                                            LORRAINE C. MILLER,

                                                                 Clerk.