Think You Won’t Need Long-Term Care? Think Again
According to a 2017 report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Long-Term Care (LTC) is something the majority of us will need. Approximately 70% of people over 65 will require chronic care later in life, and 20% of those individuals will need that care longer than five years. Many people believe they can count on Medicaid to pay long-term care services, but that’s not often the case. For Medicaid to cover the costs, recipients must first meet income eligibility requirements (or spend down their assets), and care is restricted to Medicaid-approved services and facilities.
What Is Long-Term Care?
Long-term care is health or personal care services given over an extended period of time. These services can help basic functioning necessary to live independently, also known as Activities of Daily Living (ADLs). The ADLs are bathing, continence, dressing, eating, using the toilet, and transferring. To give you an idea of how expensive long-term care can be, here are some national averages.
- Home health aide, 44 hours a week $58,916.00 per year
- Assisted living facility, one-bedroom unit $52,591.08 per year
- Nursing home $86,764.15 per year (semi-private room) or $99,736.25 per year (private room)
Real-Life Story
It may be hard to imagine yourself becoming ill and needing long-term care but, as Joe and Theresa Mollicone can attest, it is a very real possibility. Without proper planning and expert advice from their Insurance Agent, the Mollicone’s would have drained their savings after Joe suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed and unable to speak.
The following is a true story from LifeHappens on how long-term-care insurance helped this family after an unexpected health crisis.
Financial advisor James Daoust helped Joe and Theresa Mollicone with retirement plans as well as life, disability, and health insurance, all of which they had to address on their own because each was self-employed.
As Joe approached his 65th birthday and his disability insurance was about to expire, James suggested long-term care insurance. The Mollicone’s were initially hesitant, but neither wanted to be a burden to the other or to their two adult children, so they purchased policies.
Less than six months later, Joe suffered a massive stroke that left him paralyzed on the right side and unable to speak. The long-term care insurance policy started paying the maximum daily benefit and has been just enough to cover Joe’s home care needs.
Four years later Joe reached his payout limit but continues to receive benefits because of his policy’s shared-care rider, which allows him to tap into the benefits from Theresa’s policy. To date, the insurance company has paid out more than $400,000 in benefits.
“If we didn’t have this insurance, caring for Joe would have depleted all the savings we had,” Theresa says. “Now I’m not afraid of running out of money.”
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We hope this information on the importance of long-term care insurance is helpful. If you’d like to learn how we can help you plan your retirement please give us a call (888) 539-1633
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