Voters Urged to Support Budding Moves to Include Long Term Care in National Hea...(tter make a lot of noise. Senate action...),Health

H.R. 2096 and S. 702 would allow long-term care insurance to be included in employer-sponsored cafeteria plans and flexible spending accounts, enabling people to pay their long-term care insurance premiums using pre-tax dollars. "I don't care whether these bills pass as they are, or their provisions are ported into a broader bill, just so we get the incentives," says Gott. Sponsors of the House version are Earl Pomeroy (D-ND), Allyson Schwartz (D-PA), Charles Boustany (R-LA) and Ginny Brown-Waite (R-FL). Sponsors of the Senate version are Charles Grassley (R-IA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), John Ensign (R-NV), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and Tim Johnson (D-SD).

Gott also applauds the efforts of Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA), Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ), and Representative John Dingell (D-MI) to provide some form of care for all citizens, while controlling Medicaid costs and empowering many with care needs to remain active in their communities.

"We need to let these legislators know we're behind them," says Gott. "And we need to let everyone else in Congress know too." Contact information for Washington officials is available at -- http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml. "Just fill out a form saying you want all Americans to have long term care protection, click and send," says Gott. "Or if you prefer, dial a number and state your views on the phone."

Should you wait for the legislation before investigating long term care insurance? "There's a big risk in waiting," says Gott. "If your health deteriorates, you'll have to pay a
'/>"/>