Medicaid finances care for 70 percent of all people in nursing homes and covers half of all the money spent for long-term care. The strain on state budgets is intense, and the National Governors Association has demanded federal relief. Private long-term care insurance could reduce some of those spending pressures, but few people buy such coverage today. Is Medicaid making its own problems worse by discouraging people from investing in long-term care insurance?

Professor Jeffrey Brown of the University of Illinois will present a new study of Medicaid crowd-out (co-authored with Dr. Amy Finkelstein). A panel of experts will offer their critique of the study, and assess the barriers facing private long-term care insurance.