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2nd Quarter 2002Executive SummariesLong Term Care and Other Health & Pension Issues
by Janemarie Mulvey and Annelise Li The aging of the baby boomers will have an enormous impact on the future of
long-term care costs. This article projects the magnitude of that impact, discusses
sources of financing, and considers the cost and feasibility of three options
for financing future long-term care services. The authors investigate the alternatives
of increasing personal savings, raising payroll taxes and expanding employer-sponsored
private long-term care insurance coverage, respectively.
by Paul J. Yakoboski This article is based on two recent reports by the American Council of Life
Insurers (ACLI) that illuminate the reasons why individuals purchase private
long-term care insurance in both the group and individual markets. This information
suggests that a younger and more diverse group of individuals are becoming increasingly
interested in private long-term care insurance and that workplace education
linking the purchase of long-term care insurance to retirement planning may
promote coverage.
by Robert L. Clark and Olivia S. Mitchell The authors investigate how the Japanese pension market for funded employment-based
pensions is changing and how it might be strengthened in order to better serve
Japan's rapidly aging population. First, they describe the Japanese pension
system at the end of the 20th century and provide an overview and evaluation
of the changes in the pension arena emerging from Japan's 2001 legislation.
Then, the authors raise important design questions that must be answered if
Japan's employment-based pensions are to be reformed and modernized. Finally,
the authors suggest lessons for Japan based on recent changes in U.S. pension
plans.
by James H. Smalhout The economic impact of Social Security reform could be substantial, but it
will turn to a significant extent on public perceptions concerning how workers
could receive their accumulated retirement savings from any future system of
Social Security investment accounts. This article is intended to help policy
makers, regardless of their political outlook, arrive at conclusions about benefit
design choices by providing a framework for evaluating annuity options and other
payout alternatives in light of their possible economic effects.
by Charles L. Baum, Richard L. Hannah and William F. Ford On April 7, 2000, President Clinton signed the Senior Citizens' Freedom to
Work Act. The act reduces the Social Security retirement benefit penalties previously
imposed on 65- through 69-year-old workers who earned more than nominal incomes
after enrolling in the program. This article analyzes the impact that the act
will have on retirement decisions of the affected cohorts of older workers and
closes with an analysis of how the act may affect employer-provided pension,
medical and paid leave plans.
by Michael Petrasek and Lynn Rapin The authors review the evidence that mental health coverage pays for itself
by reducing overall health care costs, satisfies and helps patients who receive
it, reduces employee absenteeism, and improves employee functioning. They then
explain the factors contributing to the decline in mental health services valuations
and what employers can do to minimize them. Full text copies of these articles are available through the INFOSOURCE™ Document Delivery Service. Article reprints are also available in quantities of 100 or more. For information, call the Publications Department at (888) 33-IFEBP. You can order your subscription (reprints and back issues) online. Four issues for $100 (or $75 for CEBS registrants). |
