Do you have a plan for your future long-term care needs? It's natural to want to avoid the issue, but instead of putting if off, why not meet it head-on? Together, let's make a plan to ease the future stress and financial burden on your family. After all, 70% of people over age 65 will need long-term care at some point in their lives. I can help you plan for a secure financial future.
What Is Long-Term Care?
Long-term care isn't about urgent medical treatment. Many people think it just means living in a nursing home, but that's not always the case. It's about getting the help and care you need to accomplish the basic tasks of daily living and personal care. These are called ADLs, or Activities of Daily Living. They include:
- dressing
- bathing
- grooming
- bathroom use
- eating
- moving around the house
Depending on your needs and health, all of this can happen in your own home. In fact, 49% of people receiving long-term care get help in their own home, with a professional provider. 27% receive care in a nursing home, while an additional 25% live in assisted living communities with adult day care.
Who Pays for My Care?
You might be surprised to learn that Medicare doesn't pay for long-term care. Medicare only picks up the bill if your care is part of your recovery from an illness or operation that required hospitalization. If you need skilled nursing services or physical therapy for your rehabilitation, Medicare will cover these costs for a short period of time. For example, the average Medicare-covered stay in a nursing home is just 22 days (although they will cover up to 100 days).
But what happens after that?
Medicare does not cover the cost of getting help with ADLs (the daily living tasks listed above), whether they happen in your home or in long term care facilities. You will be responsible for these kinds of costs. That's exactly what long-term care insurance is designed to help with. The total cost of long-term care treatment can easily add up to $200,000, based on a survey done by the Mature Market Institute. If you don't have that kind of money budgeted into your retirement account (and who does?), it might be time to consider long-term care insurance.