Do you have a plan for your Long Term Care? Will you end up in a nursing home and outlive or severely deplete your financial resources? Too often people avoid facing reality of the Long-Term Care threat, avoid taking action while they still can and avoid communicating their Long-Term Care game plan to their loved ones.
The odds of falling prey to Long-Term Care are staggering and the cost can be even more so. A year in a Connecticut Nursing Home averages more then $90, 000.00. Unfortunately, Many Americans hold the mistaken belief that Medicare and Medicare Supplemental Insurance will cover Long-Term Care but at best, Medicare will only cover a part or all of the first 100 days of care. The lions share of all Long-Term Care costs is paid out of your own pocket. Once those assets have been spent down to the applicable poverty level an individual may qualify for Medicaid...a government Long-Term Care program.
Against this backdrop, Long-Term Care Insurance (LTCI) has become one of the fastest growing insurance products in the country. Fortunately LTCI can be designed to fit almost any budget. Most LTCI policies share some common features you should know and should be looking for:
1. Benefit Amount: How much will the policy pay?
2. Benefit Triggers: When will the policy pay benefits?
3. Inflation Protection: Will the purchasing power increase?
4. Level of Care: Are Custodial and Intermediate Care covered, along with Skilled Nursing Care? Is Home Health Care covered?
As with any form of insurance, the policy is only as good as the ability of the insurance company to pay your claim. Check out the financial strength and reputation of the insurance company and seek competent legal counsel to interpret the contractual provisions of any LTCI policy before you sign on the dotted line.
- I totally agree with what you're saying. I wish more people felt this way and took the time to express themselves. Keep up the great work.
Chris Leaf
Posted by: Chris Leaf | January 23, 2006 at 09:45 AM
I wish more people felt this way and took the time to express themselves. Keep up the great work.
Chris Scanlon
Posted by: Chris Scanlon | January 26, 2006 at 08:47 AM
Thanks for this great post. You've got some really good info in your blog.
Andrea Jasperson
Posted by: Andrea Jasperson | May 04, 2006 at 08:57 AM
I'll bet that few people with family in a care facility say "Gee, I'm so sorry Grandma bought that long-term care policy."
Posted by: Angie Hartford | July 04, 2007 at 03:28 PM
Wow,
This information is great for the people who are looking for to invest on long term care. Even i want to share some thing with you all. With various incidences of cancer, HIV and other long terms illnesses on the rise, it is imperative that every individuals has adequate protection in place to deal with any long term care needs that they may have in the future, whether that need is to be fulfilled in the near future or in the distant future.
Posted by: Long Term Care | April 30, 2008 at 03:05 AM
For many seniors, it is very important to leave something behind for their loved ones when they die. Because of this, many have embraced a trust when in the process of estate planning. A trust is a legal arrangement which enables one person or one institution full control over any property that will be given to a third party. The benefit of trusts is that more assets can be preserved, and your heirs won’t have any extra delays or costs, nor will they be tied up in probate in the event of your death.
Rose.
Posted by: Life Insurance Trusts | January 22, 2009 at 06:01 AM