Latest news with #RichardJohnson
Spectator
6 days ago
- Business
- Spectator
Letters: Britain sold its fishing industry down the river
Hard reset Sir: Once again we must debate Brexit ('Starmer vs the workers', 24 May). The 'reset' agreement does give more control over UK domestic policy to the EU, if the points outlined in it are followed through. I assume they will be, as that's what Labour's front bench wants. (The prospect of us rushing through EU passport control, as Michael Gove and others suggest, is still unlikely, though – the document states only that there will be the 'potential use of e-gates where appropriate'.) Britain must pay for many of the extra 'benefits'. Apparently the boost to the UK amounts to £9 billion by 2040, but I'm unable to identify any government research that supports this – only an assertion in a press release. According to the release, in the absence of agreement on the EU's carbon trading system, UK exporters will contribute £800 million to the EU from 2026. My own simplistic calculation is that if this is repeated for 15 years, it would cost us £12 billion. If this is treated as a benefit by our government, then there are no other benefits – but only costs – to reach a total of £9 billion. And Richard Johnson ('Left alone', 24 May) wants government loans with union and workers' conditions attached to the fishing industry. Socialism never dies! Simply giving tax credits for such investment would be 100 per cent better. Trevor Pitman Beckenham, Kent Hook, line and sinker Sir: Matthew Parris is right: the French have always looked after their coastal communities better than we have ('Flogging a dead fish', 24 May). In contrast, Britain missed a clear opportunity.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Homeowner in NW Houston shares harrowing moments when tree fell during Monday nights storms.
The Brief Ms. Penny, the homeowner, says she was asleep when a tree fell on her home during Monday night's storms. She says the tree partially came through her roof, and now she is working with insurance to start a claim. Richard Johnson, Director of Communications with the Insurance Council of Texas, discusses how homeowners should prepare ahead of the Hurricane season. HOUSTON - A northwest Houston homeowner is speaking with us about the storms Monday night that left a tree on top of her home. The homeowner, who wants to be known as Ms. Penny, tells FOX 26 she is still in shock. The backstory "It's still mind-boggling, mind-blowing and, of course, it's raining and, around midnight, I heard this extremely loud boom, but I assumed it was a transformer or something. Then seconds later, my daughter ran downstairs, and she was like, mom, the roof collapsed," said Ms. Penny. "So I went to the stairs. When you look straight up the stairs, the ceiling is still intact, but as I got up the stairs, I could see to the right, which is the game room. My grandson plays his PlayStation there." Thankfully, he was not sitting there, she says. She called 911 and officials came who told her it was not safe to stay Monday night, so she reached out to her insurance. "This is one of those times where an automated system did not work. I needed a live person to talk to because me and my family was displaced last night," said Ms. Penny. "So for this to happen and to be in the house and to live that, yeah, that was definitely an experience. I am still shaken. Ms. Penny said she has been in the home for three years, and she thought about cutting down her pine trees, but after this storm she says she is getting rid of all of them. The tree that fell on her roof was taken down just after 4 p.m. on Tuesday. Why you should care Richard Johnson, Director of Communications Insurance Council of Texas spoke with us about what you need to know. "The first thing is to go ahead and check your insurance policies, make sure that everything is up-to-date, check your deductibles, make sure that you can afford them, make sure you have the right coverage," said Richard Johnson, Director of Communications, Insurance Council of Texas. Johnson adds that Houstonians need to look into getting flood insurance, but also start doing a home inventory. That means taking pictures of your belongings and keeping a record of them should the worst happen. So, for wind insurance, do you need a TWA policy, which is the Texas Wind Association, or a Fair Plan Policy. Right now in the Houston area and along the coast, you may need that other policy for wind and hail coverage. If you don't, and if it's your typical homeowners' policy, ask about your deductible. You might have a different deductible for fire than you do for wind and hail," Johnson added. Johnson adds if you find yourself in a situation like this homeowner, and you need a contractor, be careful because contractors use opportunities like this to prey on homeowners. "Sometimes, deals could be too good to be true. Get with friends, family and roofers to ask for recommendations and if they ask you or tell you they can wave your deductible, that is a huge red flag. It's something that we can't do in Texas, so if somebody starts talking to you like that, you should move onto the next contractor," Johnson said. The Source FOX 26 Reporter Leslie DelasBour spoke with the homeowner about the incident.
Business Mayor
17-05-2025
- Health
- Business Mayor
Long-term care costs can be a 'huge problem,' experts say. Here's why
Kate_sept2004 | E+ | Getty Images Long-term care can be costly, extending well beyond $100,000. Yet, financial advisors say many households aren't prepared to manage the expense. 'People don't plan for it in advance,' said Carolyn McClanahan, a physician and certified financial planner based in Jacksonville, Florida. 'It's a huge problem.' Over half, 57%, of Americans who turn 65 today will develop a disability serious enough to require long-term care, according to a 2022 report published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Urban Institute. Such disabilities might include cognitive or nervous system disorders like dementia, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease, or complications from a stroke, for example. The average future cost of long-term care for someone turning 65 today is about $122,400, the HHS-Urban report said. But some people need care for many years, pushing lifetime costs well into the hundreds of thousands of dollars — a sum 'out of reach for many Americans,' report authors Richard Johnson and Judith Dey wrote. The number of people who need care is expected to swell as the U.S. population ages amid increasing longevity. 'It's pretty clear [workers] don't have that amount of savings in retirement, that amount of savings in their checking or savings accounts, and the majority don't have long-term care insurance,' said Bridget Bearden, a research and development strategist at the Employee Benefit Research Institute. 'So where is the money going to come from?' she added. Long-term care costs can exceed $100,000 While most people who need long-term care 'spend relatively little,' 15% will spend at least $100,000 out of pocket for future care, according to the HHS-Urban report. Expense can differ greatly from state to state, and depending on the type of service. Nationally, it costs about $6,300 a month for a home health aide and $9,700 for a private room in a nursing home for the typical person, according to 2023 data from Genworth, an insurer. Here's a look at other stories impacting the financial advisor business. It seems many households are unaware of the potential costs, either for themselves or their loved ones. For example, 73% of workers say there's at least one adult for whom they may need to provide long-term care in the future, according to a new poll by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. However, just 29% of these future caregivers — who may wind up footing at least part of the future bill —had estimated the future cost of care, EBRI found. Of those who did, 37% thought the price tag would fall below $25,000 a year, the group said. The EBRI survey polled 2,445 employees from ages 20 to 74 years old in late 2024. Many types of insurance often don't cover costs Maskot | Maskot | Getty Images There's a good chance much of the funding for long-term care will come out-of-pocket, experts said. Health insurance generally doesn't cover long-term care services, and Medicare doesn't cover most expenses, experts said. For example, Medicare may partially cover 'skilled' care for the first 100 days, said McClanahan, the founder of Life Planning Partners and a member of CNBC's Financial Advisor Council. This may be when a patient requires a nurse to help with rehab or administer medicine, for example, she said. Where is the money going to come from? Bridget Bearden research and development strategist at the Employee Benefit Research Institute But Medicare doesn't cover 'custodial' care, when someone needs help with daily activities like bathing, dressing, using the bathroom and eating, McClanahan said. These basic everyday tasks constitute the majority of long-term care needs, according to the HHS-Urban report. Medicaid is the largest payer of long-term care costs today, Bearden said. Not everyone qualifies, though: Many people who get Medicaid benefits are from lower-income households, EBRI's Bearden said. To receive benefits for long-term care, households may first have to exhaust a big chunk of their financial assets. 'You basically have to be destitute,' McClanahan said. Republicans in Washington are weighing cuts to Medicaid as part of a large tax-cut package. If successful, it'd likely be harder for Americans to get Medicaid benefits for long-term care, experts said. Long-term care insurance considerations The Good Brigade | Digitalvision | Getty Images Few households have insurance policies that specifically hedge against long-term care risk: About 7.5 million Americans had some form of long-term care insurance coverage in 2020, according to the Congressional Research Service. By comparison, more than 4 million baby boomers are expected to retire per year from 2024 to 2027. Washington state has a public long-term care insurance program for residents, and other states like California, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Pennsylvania are exploring their own. Long-term care insurance policies make most sense for people who have a high risk of needing care for a lengthy duration, McClanahan said. That may include those who have a high risk of dementia or have longevity in their family history, she said. McClanahan recommends opting for a hybrid insurance policy that combines life insurance and a long-term care benefit; traditional stand-alone policies only meant for long-term care are generally expensive, she said. Be wary of how the policy pays benefits, too, she said. For example, 'reimbursement' policies require the insured to choose from a list of preferred providers and submit receipts for reimbursement, McClanahan said. For some, especially seniors, that may be difficult without assistance, she said. With 'indemnity' policies, which McClanahan recommends, insurers generally write benefit checks as soon as the insured qualifies for assistance, and they can spend the money how they see fit. However, the benefit amount is often lower than reimbursement policies, she said. How to be proactive about long-term care planning 'The challenge with long-term care costs is they're unpredictable,' McClanahan said. 'You don't always know when you'll get sick and need care.' The biggest mistake McClanahan sees people make relative to long-term care: They don't think about long-term care needs and logistics, or discuss them with family members, long before needing care. For example, that may entail considering the following questions, McClanahan said: Do I have family members that will help provide care? Would they offer financial assistance? Do I want to self-insure? What are the financial logistics? For example, who will help pay your bills and make insurance claims? Do I have good advance healthcare directives in place? For example, as I get sicker will I let family continue to keep me alive (which adds to long-term care expenses), or will I move to comfort care and hospice? Do I want to age in place? (This is often a cheaper option if you don't need 24-hour care, McClanahan said.) If I want to age in place, is my home set up for that? (For example, are there many stairs? Is there a tiny bathroom in which it's tough to maneuver a walker?) Can I make my home aging-friendly, if it's not already? Would I be willing to move to a new home or perhaps another state with a lower cost of long-term care? Do I live in a rural area where it may be harder to access long-term care? Being proactive can help families save money in the long term, since reactive decisions are often 'way more expensive,' McClanahan said. 'When you think through it in advance it keeps the decisions way more level-headed,' she said.
CNBC
17-05-2025
- Health
- CNBC
Long-term care costs can be a 'huge problem,' experts say. Here's why
Long-term care can be costly, extending well beyond $100,000. Yet, financial advisors say many households aren't prepared to manage the expense. "People don't plan for it in advance," said Carolyn McClanahan, a physician and certified financial planner based in Jacksonville, Florida. "It's a huge problem." Over half, 57%, of Americans who turn 65 today will develop a disability serious enough to require long-term care, according to a 2022 report published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Urban Institute. Such disabilities might include cognitive or nervous system disorders like dementia, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease, or complications from a stroke, for example. The average future cost of long-term care for someone turning 65 today is about $122,400, the HHS-Urban report said. But some people need care for many years, pushing lifetime costs well into the hundreds of thousands of dollars — a sum "out of reach for many Americans," report authors Richard Johnson and Judith Dey wrote. The number of people who need care is expected to swell as the U.S. population ages amid increasing longevity. "It's pretty clear [workers] don't have that amount of savings in retirement, that amount of savings in their checking or savings accounts, and the majority don't have long-term care insurance," said Bridget Bearden, a research and development strategist at the Employee Benefit Research Institute. "So where is the money going to come from?" she added. While most people who need long-term care "spend relatively little," 15% will spend at least $100,000 out of pocket for future care, according to the HHS-Urban report. Expense can differ greatly from state to state, and depending on the type of service. Nationally, it costs about $6,300 a month for a home health aide and $9,700 for a private room in a nursing home for the typical person, according to 2023 data from Genworth, an insurer. Here's a look at other stories impacting the financial advisor business. It seems many households are unaware of the potential costs, either for themselves or their loved ones. For example, 73% of workers say there's at least one adult for whom they may need to provide long-term care in the future, according to a new poll by the Employee Benefit Research Institute. However, just 29% of these future caregivers — who may wind up footing at least part of the future bill —had estimated the future cost of care, EBRI found. Of those who did, 37% thought the price tag would fall below $25,000 a year, the group said. The EBRI survey polled 2,445 employees from ages 20 to 74 years old in late 2024. There's a good chance much of the funding for long-term care will come out-of-pocket, experts said. Health insurance generally doesn't cover long-term care services, and Medicare doesn't cover most expenses, experts said. For example, Medicare may partially cover "skilled" care for the first 100 days, said McClanahan, the founder of Life Planning Partners and a member of CNBC's Financial Advisor Council. This may be when a patient requires a nurse to help with rehab or administer medicine, for example, she said. But Medicare doesn't cover "custodial" care, when someone needs help with daily activities like bathing, dressing, using the bathroom and eating, McClanahan said. These basic everyday tasks constitute the majority of long-term care needs, according to the HHS-Urban report. Medicaid is the largest payer of long-term care costs today, Bearden said. Not everyone qualifies, though: Many people who get Medicaid benefits are from lower-income households, EBRI's Bearden said. To receive benefits for long-term care, households may first have to exhaust a big chunk of their financial assets. "You basically have to be destitute," McClanahan said. Republicans in Washington are weighing cuts to Medicaid as part of a large tax-cut package. If successful, it'd likely be harder for Americans to get Medicaid benefits for long-term care, experts said. Few households have insurance policies that specifically hedge against long-term care risk: About 7.5 million Americans had some form of long-term care insurance coverage in 2020, according to the Congressional Research Service. By comparison, more than 4 million baby boomers are expected to retire per year from 2024 to 2027. Washington state has a public long-term care insurance program for residents, and other states like California, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York and Pennsylvania are exploring their own. Long-term care insurance policies make most sense for people who have a high risk of needing care for a lengthy duration, McClanahan said. That may include those who have a high risk of dementia or have longevity in their family history, she said. McClanahan recommends opting for a hybrid insurance policy that combines life insurance and a long-term care benefit; traditional stand-alone policies only meant for long-term care are generally expensive, she said. Be wary of how the policy pays benefits, too, she said. For example, "reimbursement" policies require the insured to choose from a list of preferred providers and submit receipts for reimbursement, McClanahan said. For some, especially seniors, that may be difficult without assistance, she said. With "indemnity" policies, which McClanahan recommends, insurers generally write benefit checks as soon as the insured qualifies for assistance, and they can spend the money how they see fit. However, the benefit amount is often lower than reimbursement policies, she said. "The challenge with long-term care costs is they're unpredictable," McClanahan said. "You don't always know when you'll get sick and need care." The biggest mistake McClanahan sees people make relative to long-term care: They don't think about long-term care needs and logistics, or discuss them with family members, long before needing care. For example, that may entail considering the following questions, McClanahan said: Being proactive can help families save money in the long term, since reactive decisions are often "way more expensive," McClanahan said. "When you think through it in advance it keeps the decisions way more level-headed," she said.
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Veterans Appreciation Service for Mower County veterans to be hosted by Grace Lutheran
May 9—The Grace Lutheran Church Veterans Appreciation Sunday Service will be held at 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 18 at Grace Lutheran Church in Austin located 2001 6th Ave SE, Austin. This year's service marks the 22nd year that Grace Lutheran has held this service. The speaker this year is Craig Johnson, captain, armor, in the United States Army Reserve. Johnson is a retired attorney from Austin. The idea of this service came from Richard and Lavona Johnson. Richard was a veteran of the US Navy during World War II. During this service, each branch of the military has their flag displayed and as the congregation sings that branch's veterans of that branch are asked to come forward to be recognized. "It is a very moving service" said Randy Mickelson, organizer of this year's service. "As a veteran, I take pride in standing with the other men and women that have honorably served our country." For many veterans of the Viet Nam conflict, this service was the first time that they had been thanked for their service. Everyone is invited to attend. All veterans, their families and friends are encouraged to join us. A light lunch will be served following the service, courtesy of Grace Lutheran WELCA.
