A surprise assault on a weakened population is an equation for disaster. In our own little corner of a worldwide conflagration, our direct relationship to those most vulnerable cannot be lost on any of us. The simple truth is we have struggled valiantly to defeat or ameliorate inferior or discounted institutional care. If circumstance demands custodial assistance outside the home, we have tried to make sure there were funds available to maximize the level of care. At this moment a return to normal is a when not if. Our 20 year campaign to blunt the force of a potential catastrophic risk will surely return with a new urgent momentum, insight into the cost of physical isolation and a recognition of the health care vulnerability of those most in need of care.
How could this historical tragedy have arrived at a less opportune time? Although this column has a tendency to overuse metaphors, analogies, parables and euphemisms, it is impossible to ignore the apparent similarities between our current national health emergency and the readiness of extended care indemnification. We are unprepared.
Originally published in the May 2020 edition of Broker World Magazine