Long Term Care News - Week of September 8, 2020
Long Term Care News - Week of September 8, 2020
If California wildfires present a "moral hazard" to insurers, just imagine what the unknown long-term effects of COVID will do to your future insurability. The writing is on the wall.
White Collar Crime: The sea change we're experiencing of employees working from home has quietly undermined the $1,000,000,000,000 economy supported by office workers: dry cleaners, gyms, food carts, photocopiers, coffee kiosks, commercial real estate, business travel. Once you start going through the list, a lot hinges on a system where people congregate inside skyscrapers, inside city centers...
Hazzard County: A moral hazard is a "lack of incentive to guard against risk where one is protected from its consequences, eg by insurance." This week, the NYT explored how insurers have begun pulling back from fire-prone counties in California, "potentially devastating the housing market."
Belt Tightening: In this illustrative Medicaid story out of Washington State, trade groups found that SNF's incur an extra $50/patient/day in COVID-19-specific costs. Starting in March, these facilities rec'd a bump of $29/patient/day (retro to Feb 1st), until the hammer came down on July 1st-- at which point the supplementary funds dropped to $5/pt/day. You can do the math.
This is Your Brain on Drugs: ... and this is your brain on quarantine.
Kick the Habit: You can't break a habit by trying not to do it. But you can beat it.
Representation Matters: African-Americans are twice as likely to get Alzheimer's disease than whites, yet account for less than 5 percent of participants in most clinical trials for new drugs and therapies. Disparities like these (incl. the under-representation of women in medical research) are well-known, but still challenging to redress.
What Happended in Room 10? You've got a long weekend, so I've got a long read for you, examining how the Life Care Center of Kirkland became our first "hotspot." It's a story of ageism, of real individuals, and the consequences of policy.
Weekly Breeder: You're not the only one who won't eat your vegetables.
