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MIR-2006-11AB, November 2006
MLN Matters. . .Information for Medicare Providers
(Issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
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“Own Your Future”: Long-Term Care (LTC) Campaign
Provider Types Affected
Physicians, providers, and their staff who provide health care to individuals between the ages of 45 and 65
Provider Action Needed
This special edition article is being provided by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to inform you about the Long-Term Care Awareness Campaign, “Own Your Future” - the first effort of its kind designed to increase public awareness about the need to plan for future long-term care needs. Providers in Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Texas, may want to take special note, as consumers in those states will receive letters over the next year alerting them of the campaign to promote LTC planning and of the availability of a free Long-Term Care Planning Kit. You may want to reinforce the importance of such planning as you counsel your patients.
Background
Components of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), including the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning & Evaluation (ASPE), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and the Administration on Aging (AOA), are working with the National Governors Association to sponsor the Long-Term Care (LTC) Awareness Campaign, “Own Your Future.” The LTC Awareness Campaign represents a unique partnership between the federal government and the states to offer an important message to consumers about planning ahead for long-term care.
The LTC Awareness Campaign is an effort to increase public awareness of the need to plan for future long-term care needs. Many people today do not think about their future long-term care needs, and therefore fail to plan appropriately. It is strongly felt that if individuals and families are more aware of their potential need for long-term care, they will be more likely to take steps to prepare for the future and determine how they would like their needs to be met.
The LTC Awareness Campaign includes evaluation activities designed to identify communication strategies that prove most effective in increasing awareness and promoting increased long-term care planning activities. The lessons learned from this campaign will be used in the design of future long-term care awareness campaigns in other states.
The Campaign is now entering a third phase and builds upon the successes achieved in the first two phases in which nine states participated (Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Washington). It is supported with additional funds made available by Congress under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.
Additional Information
The LTC Awareness Campaign uses long-term care awareness materials that were designed, tested, and approved as part of an earlier awareness effort, and the materials include the following:
- Brochure (with business reply card) offering the Long-Term Care Planning Kit.
- Long-Term Care Planning Kit featuring:
- A brochure describing what is, and what is not, covered by public programs related to long-term care. The brochure also describes several ways to plan ahead, addressing legal issues, assessing services, and assessing private financing options.
- An audio CD with interviews of persons engaged in several different types of long-term care planning activities. Consumers in campaign states may order the free Planning Kit by telephone (1-866-PLAN LTC), business reply card, or at a newly-created consumer Web site (http://www.aoa.gov/ownyourfuture
 ). Individuals outside the LTC Awareness Campaign states can download the Planning Kit at the consumer Web site (http://www.aoa.gov/ownyourfuture ), or they can order and receive the free “Own Your Future” Planning Kit by calling 1-866-PLAN-LTC.
Additional important materials associated with the “Own Your Future” campaign are available at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/center/longtermcare.asp on the CMS Web site. The materials present issues and decisions that anyone thinking about long-term care may encounter such as:
- Home modification(s),
- Family caregiving dynamics, and
- Financing of care.
Disclaimer
This article was prepared as a service to the public and is not intended to grant rights or impose obligations. This article may contain references or links to statutes, regulations, or other policy materials. The information provided is only intended to be a general summary. It is not intended to take the place of either the written law or regulations. We encourage readers to review the specific statutes, regulations and other interpretive materials for a full and accurate statement of their contents.
MLN Matters Number: SE0671
Related Change Request (CR) #: N/A
Effective Date: N/A
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