Tuesday, October 11, 2011

CLASS ACT ON LIFE SUPPORT

You remember the CLASS Act (Community Living Services and Supports Program), it's the part of the Health Reform law that created a long-term care program for everyone.  It also had the brakes put on it by the Obama Administration.  The reason for this is that it is an actuary time-bomb.  It would build up reserves over 5 years (during this time nobody can use it) and then, because it has no pre-existing condition limitations, would go quickly into a death-spiral from all the sick people making claims.  As part Health Reform, the CLASS Act also needed to be self-sustaining. 

Interestingly, the CLASS Act is on the books as reducing the federal deficit.  The administration is using premiums that haven't been paid for a program that hasn't been established count as reducing the deficit. 

Anyway, unless they can make this program self-sustaining, it doesn't seem that it's going to be implemented.  At least not anytime in the near future.