Initiative to Educate Baby Boomers on Technologies That Will Preserve Their Independence in Retirement

Long term care insurer MedAmerica announces the launch of an educational campaign designed to raise awareness of promising advances to the delivery of long term care services. The initiative will include a three-part series on how technology will enable Baby Boomers to sustain independence longer than past generations. Beginning in November, the bulletins in the series will be structured to release as stand-alone pieces, or may be promoted as a recurring column, covering topics such as home telehealth, sensor networks, digital homes, and GPS technology.

MedAmerica's medical director Patricia Bomba, M.D., F.A.C.P, will provide expert insight into what these technologies mean for future care and will be available for interviews upon request. "What is particularly interesting is seeing how the Baby Boomer generation will use computer technology to help them through aging," comments Dr. Bomba.

With the uncertain future of Medicaid and Social Security, MedAmerica wants people to be aware of what future care could potentially look like. Based on research of technologies currently in development, MedAmerica's expert staff will provide accessible information to the general public, bringing a sense of understanding to the long term care industry and helping the public prepare accordingly.

One of the main goals of this initiative is to educate families and providers about the role technology can potentially play in providing long term care to maximize personal independence. MedAmerica hopes to generate interest in these topics, encouraging additional research and consideration from all stakeholders, while easing concerns regarding the effects of these technologies.

In the future, more and more cutting-edge technologies will reach the market that are not covered by traditional long term care insurance policies on the market today that require patients to pay for services up front, and then submit receipts to the insurer for approval and, hopefully, reimbursement. That's why MedAmerica developed an affordable new type of long term care insurance policy that guarantees a cash benefit for the insured to use however he decides throughout his benefit eligibility. MedAmerica's CareDirections® Simplicity product is unique in that an insured could use benefits to purchase whatever is needed with no restrictions.

MedAmerica Insurance Company and MedAmerica Insurance Company of New York are the long term care subsidiaries of a $5 billion not-for-profit health insurer that finances and delivers health care to more than 2 million people in New York State. With long term care insurance its singular focus, MedAmerica brings a depth of expertise to provide solutions for long term care financing by creating simple to understand and easy to use products, maintaining fiscal responsibility, shaping public policy and delivering on its promises.