Long-term care in the United States: policy themes and promising practices.

This analysis provides an overview of the major policy themes and promising practices emerging in recent years as policymakers and researchers struggle to design a long-term care system that meets the needs of an aging population. Themes that have dominated the long-term care policy debates include: recruiting and retaining a qualified long-term care workforce; devising financing mechanisms for those requiring long-term care; and moving away from an institutional-based long-term care system towards more home- and community-based services. Three promising practices that have emerged in the past few decades include: the culture change movement; service integration that combines medical and social care; and various forms of community residential care that bring together housing and services in a more home-like environment. It concludes with long-term care recommendations for policymakers.