Long-term care isn’t a topic most people can approach easily. Not everyone wants to talk about it because it forces you to plan for the future and make some tough decisions. It’s hard to say it out loud, but at some point, your loved ones will need extra care when they will retire and enter their senior years.
You and your family will likely be responsible for taking care of your parents or grandparents. Here, long-term care insurance comes in. It includes several services that are not covered by your regular health insurance. For example, long-term insurance will offer assistance with daily activities that are a part of a routine, such as dressing, bathing, and getting out of bed.
This insurance policy covers the cost of chronic medical conditions or any disorder or disabilities, such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Many policies reimburse you for the care that you get in certain places. These include:
- A nursing home
- Your home
- A daycare center
- An assisted living facility
A long-term care insurance policy should be an important part of your financial plan after your 50s. Waiting is not an option because seniors who pass their prime age develop debilitating conditions. As a result, the carriers won’t approve their application.
Here are four things you should know about long term insurance:
It Fills In Certain Caregiving Gaps
When your loved ones are dependent on you, caregiving becomes a huge emotional and financial burden. You don’t know how long you will be taking care of your loved ones, which creates uncertainty. According to Long-Term Care Insurance Statistics, 63% of caregivers are forced to use their savings and retirement funds for care.
Moreover, caregiving is not a task that everyone can handle. If your loved ones live far away and you have your own family to look after, you won’t be able to handle your obligations.
Hence, you should look into long-term care because it will cover all kinds of health care costs, even the ones you are skeptical about.
Buy the Right Type of Long Term Care Insurance Policy
There are different types of LTC Insurance policies. Every service you receive comes with a set limit of benefits. For example, you could be allotted $100/day for nursing care. Look for a plan that covers multiple services. However, keep in mind that such a policy will have a high premium.
An option you can go for is combined long-term care and hybrid life insurance. This policy will offer you the benefits of permanent life insurance and long-term insurance. These include:
- If your loved one passes away without using the policy, their next-of-kin will receive the life insurance benefit
- If your loved one decides they need the money for personal use, they can ask for cash that will be equal to the premiums they have paid so far.
- The premiums and contracts do not change.
It Covers More Healthcare Costs Compared to Medicare
Long-term care is not covered by Medicare. It might pay for some of the home costs, but you will have to tap into your own savings for major healthcare problems. You are most likely to receive monetary relief through Medicare for a maximum of 100 days when you are recuperating in a hospital. While Medicaid might be of some help here, it is usually given when you have used up all your assets and have nothing left to pay for the medical expenses.
Once your condition is stable, Medicare will stop paying your medical bills. However, this is not the case with long-term care. As mentioned earlier, you will receive care costs until the very end unless you stop paying the premiums.
It Helps Reserve Personal Savings
According to a Cost of Care Survey, different types of long-term insurance policies help with everything, from daily activities to expenses in a nursing home and a person’s own home. The average cost of an assisted living facility is $51,600/year, and that of a nursing home is $93,072. The costs are still rising, which means that if your loved ones have created a nest egg to use after retirement, it might not be enough to pay for all their expenses.
And this is why long-term care insurance holds so much value after retirement! If these points have convinced you, why not protect your loved ones today with help from the Center for Long Term Care Planning. To know more about their services, call (561) 272-0720.