LONG
TERM CARE INSURANCE
At
ages 59 and 61, your parents are independent and self-sufficient.
Still, they realize that an accident, sudden illness or simple
aging could trigger the need for long-term care. They nursed
your grandmother through her 10-year bout with Alzheimer’s
and are well aware that a loved one’s illness can cause
heartbreak and financial strain for the entire family. Can
a long term care insurance ltc policy for
your parents help protect everyone concerned?
As the
senior population grows and health care costs escalate, adult
children are becoming increasingly concerned about caring
for their aging parents. Many families are dealing with the
challenges of mental or physical disability or prolonged illness.
For thousands of others, these realities may be just around
the corner.
The challenge
for these families is to provide the best possible long-term
care for a parent without causing severe financial hardship
for the rest of the family. In most cases, families must plan
ahead without knowing the answers to key questions: Will a
parent need round-the-clock nursing home care or assistance
with daily activities such as bathing and dressing? Will home
health care be enough? Will Medicare pay for it? Does the
parent qualify for Medicaid? What cost will the family incur?
One thing
is certain — long-term care is very expensive. Unlike
traditional medical care, which seeks to rehabilitate or correct
certain medical ills, long-term care aims to help people with
chronic conditions compensate for limitations on their ability
to function independently. Long term care
LTC involves a wide variety of services and, generally, older
people often need more care than they anticipate.
Government
assistance programs may offer little help. Medicare —
the federal health insurance program for people over the age
of 65 — provides very limited long term care
benefits and can require substantial co-payments. Medicaid
— the public health care program for low-income Americans
— has strict financial eligibility criteria and generally
requires beneficiaries to deplete their savings, or "spend
down," before it will pay for services. Other public
services may be available but typically are offered on a sliding-fee
scale, based on ability to pay. There also may be waiting
lists.
While
long term care insurance is not for everyone,
it is an attractive form of security for many people. Depending
on the policy, long term care insurance can
cover nursing home stays, home health care and community-based
services.
People
usually buy long-term care ltc policies from private insurance
companies. However, a growing number of employers are now
offering policies to their employees, employees’ parents
and retirees.
Policies
vary widely in coverage and cost. Some only cover nursing
home care; others only home care. Shop around and consider
the following factors before buying a policy:
- The
age, health, overall retirement objectives and financial
resources of the person who is to be insured;
- The
financial stability of the insurance companies you’re
considering; and,
- The
"triggers" each company requires to start coverage.
Existing
health problems, such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s,
might prevent some people from obtaining long term
care insurance due to medical underwriting standards
that insurance companies use to keep their rates affordable.
Without such provisions, most people would not buy coverage
until they needed services.
source:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/services/apact/apact05.htm
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