Venice Summer Institute 2012: The Economics of Long Term Care

In most OECD countries the era of long-term care (LTC) has arrived. More than two out of five people aged 65 or older report having some type of functional limitation (sensory, physical, mental, self-care disability, or difficulty leaving home). A few years from now, the ageing trend will accelerate, fueled by the large “baby-boomer” generation, and the relative importance of people aged 65+ will more than double by 2050.
On the other hand, with the drastic change in family values, the increasing number of childless households and the mobility of children, the number of dependent elderly who cannot count on the assistance of anyone is increasing. Those two parallel evolutions, demographic and societal, explain why there is a mounting demand on the government and the market to provide alternatives to the family that has been the most important provider of LTC services. The solution to a sustainable LTC policy appears to rest on an efficient and harmonious cooperation between the state, the market and the family. It is likely that the family will keep its leading role and that the market contribution will increase. At the same time, the state is expected to act proactively but, given the current public deficits, it has little degree of freedom.
This CESifo Venice Summer Institute Workshop will welcome theoretical and empirical contributions dealing with the economics of LTC. Specific topics include (but are not limited to) the role and design of social LTC insurance, the operation and failures of private LTC insurance markets, provision of LTC within the family (motivation, potential of crowding out by alternative sources of provision), trends in the demand of LTC services, health economics aspects of LTC, etc.