save for chronic care

Solutions at long last but how long to put in place ? QJ

Canadians urged to save for chronic care expenses
Posted By CHRISTINA SPENCER

Creating a registered chronic care savings plan, similar to an RRSP, could help Canadians with the steep health bills they will face as they grow old, says a sweeping new report on health care and the elderly.
The study by the Special Senate Committee on Aging notes that chronic illness, particularly heart disease, arthritis, diabetes and dementia, is "a major concern for seniors."
It also notes that Canada's publicly funded health care system doesn't adequately cover home or long-term care, which people with chronic illness often require.
"Because home care is not entirely publicly funded, some . . . have suggested that Canadians be urged to save so that they will eventually be able to afford services to meet their needs," the committee says. "This could be done through the creation of a registered chronic care savings plan, similar to an RRSP."
An RRSP (registered retirement savings plan) lets people shelter income from taxation up to a certain annual maximum if they are saving for their retirement. A chronic care savings plan would operate on the same principle but permit people to use the money for old-age health needs.
The proposal is one of many explored in the committee's second interim report, "Issues and Options for an Aging Population." Among some of the other options identified:
Providing tax credits for seniors who volunteer. "Volunteering is strongly associated with social connectedness," the report says;
Expanding educational tax credits beyond those given for people who take accredited courses, so that seniors could also enrol in a range of classes. "Active learning helps maintain brain health," experts told the committee;
Creating a national respite program, so that those caring for an older relative could obtain temporary help in order to take a physical and emotional break;
Making compassionate care benefits, which already exist under Employment Insurance, available for longer periods so people looking after a frail elderly person could benefit;
Introducing a national home care program to provide minimum standards across all provinces. The committee asks, however, whether such a standardized program might actually reduce service in places that already have high levels of care;
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Expanding the number of training spots in gerontology and geriatrics. "The incorporation of interdisciplinary education about aging into the core programs of all health professionals would improve the delivery of age-appropriate services," the committee says;
Increasing training in palliative care and end-of-life care.
christina.spencer@sunmedia.ca
Article ID# 956232