Why Should I Consider Long-Term Care Insurance?
1 Simple Reason Actually...
Because 1 out of every 4 adults will experience at some point in their lives a serious injury or illness that prevents them from working 30 or more days. And for most people - especially those primary wage earners whose families depend on them for their financial well-being - that time without a paycheck could prove to be catastrophic.
Long-term care includes a variety of services and support to meet health or personal care needs over an extended period of time. Most long-term care is non-skilled personal care assistance, such as help performing everyday Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), which are:
- Bathing
- Dressing
- Eating
- Using the toilet
- Transferring to bed/chair
- Caring for incontinence
Or other occasions called Cognitive Impairment, which is when a medical professional documents that you cannot perform 2 out of the 6 ADL’s by yourself, (or are cognitively impaired) your Long Term Care Policy will begin paying benefits.
The goal of long-term care services is to help you maximize your independence and functioning, with dignity, at a time when you are unable to be fully independent.
Did You Know...
At least 70% of people over 65 will need long-term care services and support at some point in their lives.
Source: 2015 Medicare & You, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
About 68% of nursing home residents and 72% of assisted living residents are women.
Source: Long-Term Care Services in the United States: 2013 Overview, National Center for Health Statistics
The national median daily rate in 2014 for a private room in a nursing home was $240, an increase of 4.35% from 2013.
Source: Genworth 2014 Cost of Care Survey, March 2014
The average length of a nursing home stay is 835 days—or more than two years. But there are several people Alzheimer’s, who were in homes for much longer.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nursing Home Care FastStats, last updated May 2014
The Bottom Line
At a median daily rate of $240, an average nursing home stay of 835 days currently costs over $200,000, making it virtually unaffordable for many Americans.
And Medicare does not pay for long-term care services, as explained by the Social Security Administration:
“Social Security pays retirement, disability, family and survivors benefits. Medicare, a separate program run by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, helps pay for inpatient hospital care, nursing care, doctors’ fees, drugs, and other medical services and supplies to people age 65 and older, as well as to people who have been receiving Social Security disability benefits for two years or more. Medicare does not pay for long-term care, so you may want to consider options for private insurance (emphasis added).”
Without proper planning, a serious accident or illness could rob you of your financial independence. Whether purchased for yourself, your spouse or for an aging parent, long-term care insurance can help protect assets accumulated over a lifetime from the ravages of long-term care costs.
Different People Have Different Needs
Meaning, some people need long-term care in a facility for a relatively short period of time while they are recovering from a sudden illness or injury, and then may be able to be cared for at home. Others may need long-term care services on an on-going basis, for example someone who is disabled from a severe stroke. Some people may need to move to a nursing home or other type of facility-based setting for more extensive care or supervision if their needs can no longer be met at home.
Let us help you design a solution that fits your needs. Like most insurance, "some" is always better than "none".