Marc Cohen, co-director of the LeadingAge LTSS Center @UMass Boston, has been named co-chair of a study panel organized by the National Academy of Social Insurance to help states design new programs to address challenges facing many of their citizens.

The study panel is part of a new academy project called “Designing State-based Social Insurance Programs for Paid Leave, Affordable Child Care and Long-Term Services and Supports.”

The academy noted some states are in the process of developing social insurance programs to meet those needs. The study panel was organized to inform those debates by researching options for funding and administering such programs.

“Many Americans do not have access to paid leave or long-term care insurance to protect themselves and their families in the case of these common life events,” said William Arnone, chief executive officer of the academy.

“This study panel is part of the Academy’s broader efforts to flesh out policy options that may help address these challenges, which are growing more urgent as changes in how we live and work reduce the number of families with stay-at-home caregivers, and as more and more Americans live longer than ever before,” he said.

Cohen, a professor of gerontology at UMass Boston’s McCormack Graduate School, will lead a group of 14 experts focusing on the the financing of long-term services and supports. The panel’s other co-chairman is Heidi Hartmann, chief executive of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, a research professor at The George Washington University and a MacArthur Fellow. She will lead an additional 13 authorities examining paid leave and affordable child care policies.

“About half of all people turning age 65 will need significant assistance with activities of daily living to remain independent as they get older,” said Cohen. “Most people don’t have the financial resources or private insurance to meet the expense for this kind of basic care, and many eventually turn to Medicaid.

“For states wishing to implement public insurance approaches to address this financial and social challenge, critical work on program design and funding options is crucial,” Cohen said.