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Cheryl Harrison CLTC specialist, helping people with long term planning since 2001.

Understanding Long Term Care

Understanding Long Term Care

Long term care (LTC) is the assistance or supervision you may need when you are not able to do some of the basic activities of daily living (ADL). These include bathing, dressing, eating, continence, toileting, and moving in and out of bed. A need for long term care may result from accidents, illness, advanced aging, stroke and other chronic conditions.

Long term expenses can  destroy even the very best constructed retirement plans. The question is not  “Can I afford it?” but “Can I afford to be without it?” The number one reason for people loosing their homes is due to medical expenses they had not counted on and for which they had little or no insurance.

Your Money or Your Wife

Whats your long term care plan

Wives may suffer when husbands refuse to buy long term care insurance. It’s a common scenario: a couple meets with their financial adviser, who recommends they consider the purchase of long term care insurance.  Many times the husband refuses to consider the purchase, saying that either family history indicates care won’t be needed, or that it’s “too expensive,” or “we’ll take care of each other.” More times than not the husband gets free long term care from their wives, the wife may not be available or may be too frail herself. In most cases, the wife will end up being a widow without long term care.

Do you have a plan?

Perceptions Facts
Perception: I probably won’t need long term care. Fact: At least 70% of people over 65 will need it at some point.
Perception: I will never end up in a nursing home so why buy long term care insurance. Fact: 70% of long term care insurance claims are for home care, not for nursing home care.
Perception: If I need long term care, I’ll pay for it myself. Fact: The median annual cost of part-time home health care exceeds $50,336.
Perception: If I need care in the future, family and friends will take care of me. Fact: The people you hope will take care of you may not be able to help when the time comes and they may not have the specific skills you could need.
Perception: I already have health and disability insurance. Fact: Neither health nor disability insurance were designed to cover long term care.
Perception: If I need long term care, the government will pay for it or provide it. Fact: Medicare’s coverage for long term care is limited in time and money allowed. Medicaid will contribute to long term care, but not until you have spent down most of your assets, leaving you with no buffer.
Perception: Long term care insurance costs thousands of dollars per month and is just for rich people. Fact: The average long term care insurance premium of $191.00 per month* is considerably less than the cost of in-home care which is can average $4,195.00 per month in 2018**.
Perception: I don’t need to think about long term care insurance until I’m older. Fact: The younger you are the more likely you are to pay lower the premiums and get a better policy.

* U.S. Individual Long Term Care Insurance, Annual Review 2013, LIMRA, February, 2014

** Genworth 2018 Cost of Care Survey


Protect your family and get the information you need from a qualified consultant to see if long term care insurance should be a part of your plan.

Having a conversation with Cheryl, you can learn how to help protect your family, yourself and your retirement income and take advantage of federal tax saving incentives.