Voters Want Help Paying Cost of Long-term Care

With average nursing home costs in the U.S. exceeding $66,000 per year, long-term care is a serious concern for likely voters and will be a consideration in their voting decisions for this mid-term election, according to a new poll released by the American Association of Retired People (AARP).

In the organization’s latest Election Watch poll, 74{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5} of the respondents said they are likely to vote for a candidate who supports a shared approach to long-term care by which both the government and individuals pay the costs.

“Roughly half of the respondents think someone in their immediate family will need long-term care in the near future,” said David Sloane, AARP director of government relations. “It’s no wonder that three-quarters of likely voters want help paying for the care that they or their loved ones will need.”

Gauging the Issues

The long-term care poll is one in a series of nine polls AARP is conducting leading up to Election Day. The polls measure voter interest in the issues AARP members have identified as their most important. The national sample is comprised of 1,500 likely voters age 42 and above.

When it comes to long-term care worries, the poll found very little difference of opinion among the age groups. Younger boomers (ages 42-50) are just as likely as older boomers (ages 51-60) and those ages 61 and above to report that they are either likely or very likely to vote for a candidate who supports a shared approach to long-term care.

The poll, which was conducted in early October, found a large number of undecided voters in the final few weeks before the elections. As of Oct. 6, a majority said they had not yet decided which candidate they will vote for in their House of Representatives race (57{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5}), and nearly half are not yet decided in their U.S. Senate race (48{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5}).

The AARP poll also suggests that Americans are narrowly divided between basing their vote for congressional candidates on “bringing home the bacon” to their congressional district (42{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5}) and agreement with the candidate’s position on major national issues (44{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5}).

On the other hand, more say a candidate’s position on one or two key issues (44{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5}) matters most when they vote rather than the personal qualities of the candidates (35{06cf2b9696b159f874511d23dbc893eb1ac83014175ed30550cfff22781411e5}).

Voting Their Conscience

The issues really do matter, Sloane asserted.

“Many voters want to learn more about where the candidates stand on issues. Through AARP voter guides, forums, and other events, people have the opportunity to ask the candidates challenging questions about issues that will still influence their vote.

“With federal and state dollars as key funding sources for long-term care,” he continued, “the issues of how to best use those resources to meet people’s needs and how to do so in a way that is affordable to individuals and society as a whole will certainly be important issues in Congress and state legislatures in 2007 and in the years to come. We need to explore additional financing options to pay for long-term care services and change the way we think about and provide these services.”