Long-Term Care

Long term care can mean many different things but any chronic or disabling condition that requires nursing care or constant supervision can bring on the need for long term care services. Long term care means not only care in a nursing home, it can also mean nursing care in your own home and help with the activities of daily living, such as dressing, eating, bathing and taking medicine.

There are many different services that would fall under the definition of long term care. These services include institutional care, i.e., nursing facilities, or non-institutional care such as home health care, personal care, adult day care, long term home health care, respite care and hospice care.

Ordinary health insurance won't cover it.

What does Long-Term Care cover?

People are living longer and longer these days. That's good news, but the flip side of that is there are more years in which there's a risk of serious health problems. And that could literally cost all of your remaining life's savings. Unfortunately, ordinary health insurance policies and Medicare usually do not pay for long-term care expenses. Medicaid, a federal/state health insurance program, will only pay for long-term care if you've already spent most of your savings or other assets. So, there's long-term care insurance.

Long-term care insurance typically covers the cost of:

• Help in your home with daily activities like bathing, dressing, eating and cleaning.
• Community programs, such as adult day care.
• Assisted living services that are provided in a special residential setting other than your own home. These services may include meals, health monitoring, and help with daily activities.
• Visiting nurses.
• Care in a nursing home.

When is the right time to buy a policy?

Many people don't think about long-term care until they get into their 70s and 80s and their health begins to fail. At these ages, you may be too high a risk for an insurer to cover you; or if you do qualify, the premiums can be astronomical. In fact, some long-term care policies have restrictions on age and health status.

The best time to buy long-term care insurance may be middle-age. It's the time when you have the highest likelihood of being eligible for a policy and, just as important, when premiums costs might be lower.

Is a policy right for you?

Long-term care insurance is probably not for everyone, but—with soaring health care costs, insurers increasingly restricting coverage and eligibility, and people's need to stretch retirement savings through more years—it's a good idea to consider it seriously. Your goals should be to protect your assets, minimize your dependence on other family members, and control where and how you receive long-term care services.
On the other hand, consider the cost. Long-term care insurance is expensive. An individual who's 65 years old and in good health can expect to pay between $2,000 and $3,000 a year for a policy that covers nursing home care and home care, with premiums adjusted for inflation. You may not want to buy a policy if the cost of premiums will lower your standard of living or force you to give up other things you need right now. And look ahead, as well. Be sure you'll be able to afford the premiums if your income declines.

Long Term Care Insurance Alternative

At Bongiovanni Insurance and Financial we recognize that the cost of long term care insurance is prohibitive to many people.  That is why we have come up with an alternative: please click here.

For a FREE, no obligation quote click here

For more information please call (203) 237-7900 or click here

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