The National Institute on Ageing (NIA) has taken a deeper dive into the subject of publicly funded long-term care insurance as a potential solution to the fiscal burdens associated with Canada’s ageing population.

The study involved an analysis of five countries and one U.S. state where public LTC insurance programs have been established. The NIA has concluded that this model deserves more serious consideration in Canada, and has published its findings and recommendations in a newly published paper, entitled: Could a National Long-Term Care Insurance Program be a Feasible Solution to Address Canada’s Growing Long-Term Care Crisis? Lessons from Six Countries.

According to the report, Canada’s governments spent approximately $38 billion on publicly funded LTC services in 2019. Meanwhile, Canadian households spent an additional $9.4 billion out-of-pocket to access additional services. With Canadians now expected to live an additional 22 years after age 65, the NIA contends those costs could add up to a crippling amount.

“It’s already clear that the current level of public funding has not been enough on its own to meet Canadians’ LTC needs,” said Dr. Samir Sinha, Director of Health Policy Research for the NIA. “Establishing a national LTC insurance program could present a unique opportunity to re-imagine Canada’s social contract and better align its provision of LTC services to the needs and preferences of older Canadians, giving them more opportunities to age in the right place.”

Though private LTC insurance is already available in Canada, the high premiums have led to limited uptake.

“Establishing a national LTC insurance program could also present an opportunity to standardize LTC policies and programs across Canada,” said Cameron Feil, NIA Associate Fellow and lead author of the report. “A national LTC insurance program could present a chance to establish a national definition of LTC services, creating common standards for eligibility, benefits and quality of care.”

The jurisdictions analyzed for this report include: Japan, Germany, South Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands, and Washington State. Given the programs vary widely in their funding methods, levels of eligibility, available benefits, and degree of user choice, the NIA sees these variances as a promising indication that Canada could tailor a LTC insurance program to target its specific needs and goals.

Here are six key ideas the NIA believes should be considered:

1. Present a national LTC insurance program as part of a new social contract for Canadians, by clearly establishing the continuum between an individual’s contributions and the benefits they receive in return to meet their future LTC needs.
2. Leverage the introduction of a national LTC insurance program to support Canadians to Age in the Right Place, having it serve as a catalyst to re-organize and allocate LTC funding toward the provision of more home and community care.
3. Use a national LTC insurance program to standardize client eligibility and benefits.
4. Leverage Canada’s established network of public and private LTC home and community care providers to operationalize a national LTC insurance program.
5. Establish care plan managers — employees who work at a local level to ensure that recipients are receiving appropriate care based on their needs — as the focal point of a national LTC insurance program to ensure that beneficiaries receive appropriate, timely care and have opportunities to remain engaged in their communities.
6. Use social contributions as the primary funding mechanism for a national LTC insurance program, ensuring that revenue is reliable, sustainable, and equitable.

Click here for more info: Could a National Long-Term Care Insurance Program be a Feasible Solution to Address Canada’s Growing Long-Term Care Crisis? — National Institute on Ageing (niageing.ca)