As this, our fifth annual issue devoted to healthcare, goes to press, Congress is debating healthcare reform -again. Presidents Nixon, Carter and Clinton tried to enact healthcare reform too. Is there no cure for all that ails healthcare?

In our cover story, renowned planner Rick Kahler takes a crack at solving the healthcare conundrum. The problem, he says, is that Americans like our healthcare-we just don't like what it costs. Like a wise planner, he advises citizens to temper their expectations. Kahler hasn't come up with a final answer, but he does outline some options. And as a planner, financing healthcare is a vital topic to discuss with clients.

Until we figure out a political fix to this problem, though, there are many planning solutions to be found. Your retired clients need Medigap insurance. Your working clients may turn to health savings accounts as a tax-advantaged supplement to high-deductible plans. Both of these complicated topics are tackled in this issue by Senior Editor Don Korn. Your clients should know about the buried fees Korn brings to light-as should you, if you're using an HSA, as many small business owners do.

Deputy Editor Stacy Schultz takes on one of the toughest planning issues: long-term-care insurance. There seems to be no reason why clients wouldn't want to cover this potentially crushing expense. And yet, many clients have resisted these policies-until the market meltdown made them realize that self-insurance was out of the question. Will this valuable product finally achieve mass appeal? Schultz explores the possibilities.

Even if Congress passes a healthcare reform law, this issue won't go away. The bills being considered will rein in runaway healthcare cost inflation, somewhat, but not enough to stave off a crisis for more than a few years. We all need to share ideas. Please email us on financial-planning.com, and contribute your thoughts.

Marion Asnes became the editor of Financial Planning magazine in 2005. Financial Planning is the leading professional magazine for independent financial planners and has a circulation of 115,000. The topics covered on its pages range from industry news and trends to sophisticated discussions of portfolio management, estate planning and philanthropy. Asnes is the first female editor in chief of Financial Planning in the magazine's 38-year history.

Before joining Financial Planning, Asnes was a senior editor at Money, participating in the magazine’s coverage of personal finance, retirement, investment and health care issues. Her areas of expertise included retirement and 401(k) planning, asset allocation, estate planning and the particular financial challenges faced by women. In addition to her regular editorial duties at Money, Asnes co-edited Money for Women, an annual special issue that was featured exclusively on “The Today Show” on NBC.

A 27-year service journalism veteran, Asnes has contributed to a long list of national publications including Vogue, Elle, Glamour, Good Housekeeping, More, Mirabella, Working Woman and Lear's. She has spoken at conferences and symposia ranging from the National Endowment for Financial Education’s Retirement Summit to the National Football League’s Rookie Symposium. In addition, Asnes has appeared on national television programs as an expert on financial and economic topics including CNN, CNN Headline News, NBC's Today, ABC's 20/20, PBS's NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor.

Asnes graduated with a B.A. from Cornell University.