“Layin’ It on the Line: The hidden IRS rule that could save your retirement from long-term care costs,” by Lyle Boss, Standard-Examiner
“Total US retirement assets were $45.8 trillion as of June 30, 2025, up 6.0 percent from March, the Investment Company Institute reported. Retirement assets accounted for 34 percent of all household financial assets in the United States at the end of June 2025. Assets in individual retirement accounts (IRAs) totaled $18.0 trillion at the end of the second quarter of 2025, an increase of 7.0 percent from the end of the first quarter of 2025. Defined contribution (DC) plan assets were $13.0 trillion at the end of the second quarter, up 6.4 percent from March 31, 2025. Government defined benefit (DB) plans—including federal, state, and local government plans—held $9.3 trillion in assets as of the end of June 2025, a 4.9 percent increase from the end of March 2025. Private-sector DB plans held $3.0 trillion in assets at the end of the second quarter of 2025, and annuity reserves outside of retirement accounts accounted for another $2.5 trillion.”
LTC Comment, Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform:
Public policy incentivizes asset accumulation. Tax-favored savings reward setting aside wealth to support retirement. What doesn’t make sense is the equally strong government incentives that discourage spending accumulated wealth on long-term care. Easy access to Medicaid while preserving wealth late in life rewards failure to plan early for LTC risk and cost and leaves most people with high LTC costs dependent on public assistance. To understand what’s going on, read the Paragon Health Institute’s “Long-Term Care: The Problem” and “Long-Term Care: The Solution” and watch this “virtual LTC event” featuring age wave visionary Ken Dychtwald and leading LTC researchers. To find ample private funds for LTC, check out “Medicaid’s $100+ Billion Leak.” For what not to do, see “Medi-Cal-amity: California’s Reckless Expansion of Medicaid Long-Term Care to the Affluent.” Much more on long-term care here.