How to Find Affordable Long-Term Care

A prolonged illness or chronic condition could end up being one of your biggest retirement expenses. Medicare pays for a maximum of 100 days of nursing home care before retirees must absorb the remaining cost themselves. However, depending on the level of assistance that you need, there are some inexpensive care options and ways to protect yourself from excessive long-term care costs. Here are a few ways to find affordable long-term care:

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To protect yourself from long term care expenses, let California Long Term Care Insurance Services help you get the protection you need. Visit us at www.californialongtermcare.com for more information.

Making Your Money Last

Smart Moves for Life’s Big Events: Easing Into Retirement

By Laura Cohn

Before you ditch the daily grind for good, do a complete benefits checkup.

Sure, go ahead and pick a date for your retirement party. But get a handle on how you intend to manage your benefits and cash flow once you stop working.

Buy long-term-care insurance. If you’re still working, see whether your employer offers it. You may be able to get a good deal — particularly now that some firms are offering policies with reduced premiums. Just make sure you understand the limits of your policy (see Long-Term Care You Can Afford). For outside help, speak to a local agent who works with a range of insurers. The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance can give you a list of agents in your area.

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To Learn more about Long Term Care Insurance, visit www.californialongtermcare.com.

BUYING INSURANCE
By Thomas Day

Why Should You Buy Long-Term Care Insurance?

1. It will help you keep your independence and dignity. Here’s how. . . some of you will spend all your assets on care while others plan to give their money away or put it in trust. With no assets you will now qualify for a welfare program called Medicaid. Medicaid typically pays for a semiprivate room in a nursing home, and; not all nursing homes take Medicaid patients. In many states it’s not easy to get Medicaid to cover home care or pay for assisted living. Many people want to stay at home, but with Medicaid may not be able to. And assisted living is rapidly becoming a preferred alternative to nursing home care for certain disabilities but Medicaid may insist on a nursing home instead.

A nursing home is not the most desirable place to finish out one’s life. For many, a terminal stay in a nursing facility robs them of a purpose in life and strips away their dignity. As an example, have you ever thought of the indignity of being bathed, toiletted or diapered in a nursing home environment? No wonder many people express the desire to die before ever having to go into a nursing home.

For some conditions a nursing home is the only alternative, but for many long-term care patients there are more options than nursing homes. A good long term-care insurance policy covers those options and when all else fails, it pays for nursing homes too.

2. If you are married and you have a need for long-term care, your spouse may be forced to pay for an outside care giver. The cost is likely to come from your combined income and assets. If the need for paid care drags on too long, your spouse may be left with minimal cash assets for future needs. Insurance solves this problem and allows your spouse to keep the assets.

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Visit www.californialongtermcare.com for more information regarding Long Term Care Insurance in California.

LTC Insurance Prevents Financial Wipeout In California
By Jennie Phipps • Bankrate.com

Long-term care insurance is a tough sell, yet it’s something middle-income people with substantial nest eggs should consider since the need for personal care can quickly deplete financial reserves. A relatively new partnership program adopted by many states may make this insurance more palatable to more people.

Why consider it? The likelihood of filing a claim for long-term care is higher than for a home wrecked by fire. A 65-year-old man has a 27 percent chance of entering a nursing home at some point in his life; a 65-year-old woman faces a 44 percent probability of doing so, according to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services. The cost of a private room in a nursing home averages more than $70,000 per year.

State governments on average spend 18 percent of their general fund budgets on Medicaid. But Medicaid doesn’t pay the bill for those with financial resources. The jointly funded, federal-state health insurance program is designed for low-income, needy people. Medicare, the federal health care program for those over 65, doesn’t cover routine nursing home care.

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If you would like more information about Long Term Care Insurance, visit www.californialongtermcare.com.

Study Reveals What Americans Pay for Long-term Care Insurance

What individuals pay for long-term care insurance can range significantly from about $700 a year to as over $13,000 per year according to a study from the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.

Individuals purchasing long-term care insurance paid as little as a few hundred dollars to as much as $13,000 a year according to a new report from the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.

“People are misled by reports that reflect averages and have the belief that this important protection is expensive,” explains Jesse Slome, Executive Director of the industry trade group. “Averages include costs paid by those who buy Cadillac plans of protection at older ages when the costs are extremely high. Averages do not reflect what most people pay.”

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Visit www.californialongtermcare.com if you need more information regarding Long Term Care Insurance.