Israel's long-term care insurance law after a decade of implementation

Israel's Long-Term Care Insurance (LTCI) law has been in effect for a decade. It is timely to review the effects of this legislation with a view to identifying possible directions for reform and lessons for other countries considering the introduction of a similar social insurance scheme. The paper considers the law's effects in terms of the size and characteristics of the beneficiary population, the coverage of the scheme, its financial standing, the rate of institutionalization of the elderly, the caregiving burden, the service delivery system, and the overall scope of long-term care services for the aged. Israel's experience has lessons for financing arrangements, target efficiency, service delivery arrangements, and the construction of the burden of care.