dr. warshawsky. >> thank you, chairman nelson, senator collins, and members of the committee. my name is mark warshawsky and i would like to add to bruce's discussion my own views on financing issues in more detail. the commission did it reached a consensus at a high level of the need for personal savings and insurance coverage and significant government support for the lower income population. but we did not agree on structures of proportion. some of the diversions arose from a lack of empirical clarity on several aspects of the problem, which we tried to address into commission but we didn't have enough time and resources to resolve them. i'm referring to our debates on whether medicaid is now and ltc insurance program for the middle income for even higher income households, whether there is significant capacity of working age adults with severe functional limitations to purchase it in the labor force and how to improve the private insurance market. focusing on the older population, some have expressed the view that medicaid is the program just for the poor. i see there's sig

dr. warshawsky. >> thank you. hairman nelson, senator collins, and members of the committee, my name is mark warshawsky and i would like to add to bruce's discussion my own views on the financing issues in more detail. the commission did reach a consensus at a higher level of the need for personal savings at insurance coverage and significant -- for the lower income population. we did not agree on structures of abortions. at least some of the diversions arose from a lack of clarity on several aspects of the problem, which we tried to address in the commission but we didn't have enough time and resources to resolve them. i'm referring to our debates and whether medicaid is now an ltc insurance program for the new income or higher income households, where there is significant capacity working age adults with severe functional limit those -- to produce the in the labor force and how to improve the private insurance labor market. focusing on older population summit expressed the view that medicaid is no program just fo

dr. mark warshawsky. we are going to year from dr. arshawsky, adjunct scholar at american enterprise institute he is the commission space chairman. i meant, dr. judy feder. doctors feder is a professor at georgetown public policy institute and fellow at the urban institute and also served at the pepper commission staff director under my former colleague of which i was the president of the claude pepper fan club. she served. either way, there was an example for those of you who were not here in washington in that era. claude pepper and ronald reagan would go to it. but at the end of the day, they were personal friends were than they could work it out together. one of the great examples of battles with leadership of the speaker, tip o'neill was when social security was within six months of becoming a graft in 1983. they said we are going to take off the table so that you can't hit your opponent over the head with it. it appointed a blue-ribbon panel. they made the recommendations on what to do, send it to the congress. we passed overwhel

dr. mark warshawsky, we're going to hear from dr. warshawsky, adjunct scholar at american enterprise institute. he is the commission's vice chairman. and then dr. judy feder, one of the commissioners of the long-term care commission. dr. feder is a professor at georgetown public policy institute and a fellow at the urban institute. and also served at the pepper commission's staff director under my former colleague of which i was the president of the claude pepper fan club -- [laughter] and she served for claude pepper. and by the way, i mean, there was an example. for those of you that were not here in washington in that era -- [laughter] claude pepper and ronald reagan would go to it. ..

dr. warshawsky, why don't you give us an opinion by setting aside the financial and political difficulties? why wouldn't a public benefit help? >> well, those are very large set of sides, senator. >> i understand. particularly in these times. >> i think people need to be given choices. i think they need to design things as best fit their situation, and to be given the support they need in a prudent way. so certainly there is a role for government, but i think they need to be provided as much in the way of choices and opportunities as they can. and that provides the right incentives, because we certainly do want people who can't afford, and i think many can, to finance these costs, and to ensure these costs, that they do so. and that it's not a burden, not an unfair burden on others for that to happen. and for the more i think that it is -- furthermore, i think it's a strong possibility, strong likelihood that the private sector with the right structure would design different options and different policy designs that would appeal to you, you know, different situations and different needs, w

dr. mark or charles key -- warshawsky. takes awayrmation from it.somehow, your health insurance policy is going to cover this monday. if not, medicare will cover it. they do not understand you have to exhaust all your resources before medicaid becomes part of it. there is misinformation, in my opinion, that has to be addressed. there is a marketing opportunity. when you look at hybrid policies of annuities merging with long- term care, do we have an opportunity to create a different actuarial basis to reduce the rate for long-term care insurance, so as to make it more accessible to those in the public, adding a tax preference to that in an attempt to increase affordability and more access? is that where we are going? similar to the longest run-on sentence in american history right now? is that similar to what life insurance companies have done with the ability to get some of your life insurance benefit before you expire? if you know what i am talking about? scott, you have adapted to the senate very well. [laughter] >> they said sooner or later i wo