Category Archives: long term care insurance california

Having The Long Term Care Talk With Your Family

This year, like many others, millions of families around the US will sit down to a delicious Holiday feast, filled with laughs, stories, and family warmth. This year, when looking around the table, there are some numbers you need to think about.

1 in 9
1 in 4
2 in 3

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 1 in 9 people age 65 and older develop Alzheimer’s. At age 85, that number jumps to almost one out of three.

Long-term care insurance can help cover the rising costs of care for people that develop Alzheimer’s and require treatment in a nursing home. Medicare does not cover this kind of health care setting. Long-term disability insurance does not cover this type of care either.

With annual care costs trending upward to $150,000 for a private room, if you don’t have a substantial nest egg set aside for long-term healthcare expenses of 2 years or more, it can ruin a family financially and emotionally.

The Society of Actuaries says that almost 1 in 4 long-term care insurance claims is from services received by people suffering from Alzheimer’s.

Industry statistics also show that nearly 2 in 3 people will require some form of long-term care assistance at age 65 and up. Maybe this year, it is time to talk openly with the family about plans to receive care when they can no longer do for themselves.

Putting a simple plan in place is easy, and getting professional guidance is no cost. The specialists at California Long Term Care Insurance Services are available to help you understand how to have “the talk” at no cost and no obligation to you.

In fact, they have put together a great report that you can get free right now that will give you great information on planning for long-term care needs, with affordable long-term care insurance options.

Fill out the short form to the right, download your guide and start “the talk”!

California Long Term Care Plans Cost More Today!

News flash!  

California Long Term Care plans cost more today than they did 20 years ago! While it is true that the cost of LTCi insurance has gone up in recent years, see all the press releases, so has the cost of care. Cost is relative to everything, remember what you were paying for medical coverage in 1994? How about a gallon of gas? Now, think about your income in 1994 and today. Everything is relative right?  This doesn’t negate the need to plan ahead and prepare for something that will affect 7 out of 10 Americans.

The interesting thing about the 7 out of 10 is that it doesn’t differentiate between economic classes. The need doesn’t change for someone earning $50,000 annually or someone earning  $150,000 annually. Loss of your ADL’s or cognitive issues could care less about your income. Having the funds available to pay for care is a necessity not a luxury. Not having a plan is a plan, just not a good one. Cost of care will continue to rise forcing you to spend more to get quality care. You can pay that difference yourself or get some help from an insurance carrier to pick up the majority of the bill. Choosing to work with an insurance carrier will definitely help lower your California Long Term Care plans cost.

Designing a personalized plan to protect your family and assets doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice today. With medical advances and the odds being in your favor of living longer and needing care it is important to protect as much as you can. A good friend of mine has been known to say that people live on budgets all the time; why would that change if you were in need of care? The question is would $2,000 or $3,000 make a difference in the care you received? So no matter what your income, the risk remains the same, now is the time to look through the different your options for California Long Term Care plans. Cost will vary but you can  put together a plan so when the need arises you have the ability to receive care and protect your family.

To speak to a representative or schedule an appointment, simply fill out and submit the short form to the right.

Support Beyond Purchasing Long Term Care Insurance

It is often hard for consumers to see the benefits of purchasing Long Term Care Insurance.  They also often overlook the value in working with an agent and an agency that specializes in LTC.  Our work as an agency definitely does not end with our client’s initial decision in purchasing Long Term Care Insurance. Two recent real-life experiences illustrated why a specialist agent and agency can make a difference:

  •  A client called and said he needed to use the policy for nursing home care.  He said he had used home care services for the past 6 months.  His health had deteriorated and he felt a facility was a better fit for him now.  I asked why he didn’t use the coverage for the home care help.  He thought it wasn’t covered because he had hired a private caregiver.  He mistakenly believed that only aides from a home care agency qualified for reimbursement.  He was able to get all of the long term care services covered.  He moved to an assisted living facility and his wife lives in the independent living unit nearby. 
  • A client called and asked to review her coverage.  During the conversation she said she thought she may need to use the insurance sometime in the future.  She described her circumstances and I realized that she might qualify use the insurance now.  I convinced her to file a claim. This activated the Care Coordination service.   They helped her find caregivers and put together a plan of care.  The plan of care outlines the details of needs and how they are met by the aide and various community services like Meals on Wheels.  Her care is covered by the insurance policy. 

We at California Long Term Care Insurance Services, Inc have been working with these types of policies for over 20 years. An agent or agency that does not have as much exposure to Long Term Care insurance plans may not have realized the opportunity to help the client use the insurance.  In both these cases we helped protect our clients’ income and assets but also improved the quality of their lives. We helped make their decision of purchasing Long Term Care Insurance a great tool in improving their quality of life when they most needed it.

Our LTCI specialists make your shopping experience easy, by helping compare the costs and benefits of policies from select insurance companies. More importantly, our agency will be there for you beyond purchasing Long Term Care Insurance. To speak to a representative or schedule an appointment, simply fill out the short form on the right and start with your Free consumer guide or contact us.

This podcast might save you or your family a lot of money and heartache!

Affordable LTCI Premiums

Katie O’ Rourke
Managing Partner

Our own Managing Partner, Katie O’ Rourke, was featured as an expert guest on the Essential Boomer. Katie is an honorary boomer and as we all know, a 30 year veteran of the insurance industry and Managing Partner of California Long Term Care insurance Services. In this podcast, Katie shared the benefit of her expertise in long-term care insurance as she provided frank and insightful answers to the following questions:

 

• What is Long Term Care?
• Where is Long Term Care typically provided?
• What are the odds of me needing long-term care?
• What does long term care cost?
• Wouldn’t a lot of families be able to provide the necessary resources?
• Don’t Medicare and health insurance provide some kind of coverage for long-term care?
• When is the best time to investigate long-term care insurance?
• What is the qualification process for Long Term Care insurance
• If somebody has a pre-existing condition, are they still able to obtain long-term care insurance?
• How do the plans work and what’s the cost?
• What are the different flavors of long-term care insurance?
• What should I look for in a policy?
• Are there any tax breaks with long-term care insurance?
• Can I get a plan at work?

This podcast (http://essentialboomer.guide/katie/ ) might save you or your family a lot of money and heartache!

Listen to this very informative podecast and then contact us with any further questions you may have. We are here for you!

Long Term Care Facts Don’t Lie

Affordable LTCI Premiums

Katie O’ Rourke
Managing Partner

Long Term Care Facts Don’t Lie … Could This One Mistake Cost You Your Retirement Savings?

You’ve worked hard all your life and now it is time to retire. You’ve got your expenses figured out and it looks like you can finally stop working and live off interest, savings, social security, and maybe even a pension. You might even choose to work a fun part time job to stay in the mix and enjoy life a bit.

Then it happens… An unforeseen health event takes place like cancer, stroke, heart disease, or some other debilitating event.

 Luckily, you got insurance to help cover most of the medical bills, but you find out it will not be enough because this event is going to require a long-term care treatment plan that normal insurance or Medicare does not cover.

 And when 70% of those over the age of 65 will need long term care in their lifetime, you wonder why you didn’t take care of this sooner. Sure, you’ve probably heard the concept of long term care insurance, but like most other people you didn’t believe you would need it, or you simply didn’t get the right information about it.

 Did you know that 79% of the people purchasing Long Term Care policies are between ages 45-64, but only 9% of baby boomers have planned for their Long Term Care needs? When someone is unprepared for the time, cost, and emotional commitment required of family to have to take care of you, retirement doesn’t look as fun as you thought.

 And because only 9% of boomers even planned for this, 67% of the people who plan to have a loved one provide care have not asked the loved one to take care of them when the need arises. This is going to create stress among the family no matter what because most long-term care events are not a quick 30-day recovery period, they can last for 5 to 10 years, or longer in some cases. And, when long term care costs can run between $2,000 to $8,000+ per month, this can wipe out most retirement accounts efficiently.

 We know the thought of having to buy another insurance policy does not sound like a fun thing to do. But, you have so many options you may not even be aware of right now. For example, if you are in the 30% of people that enjoy health during retirement, you might be eligible for a return of premium plan where if you do not use it, you get your money back.

 Regardless of return of premium options, the fact is 99% of buyers keep their policy for the rest of their life because they know the peace of mind it provides when the unexpected happens.

 We know you want to have a fulfilling retirement full of joy and love, we also know that you do not want to become a burden or cause any strain on those that care about you most.

 That is why you can get all the facts about long-term care today when you speak to our highly trained staff and learn about what options are available to you now.

 Contact us today and get the facts about long-term care planning for retirement and you.

Baby Boomers Prepare for the Financial Care of Aging Parents in California

Baby Boomers and Aging Parents – Six Tips to Prepare For Their Care

By Katie B. Marsh

Although there is some debate over the exact age range of the Baby Boom generation, the US Census Bureau identifies most Boomers as those who were born between the years 1956 to 1965. In any case, whether you were born within that time frame or fairly close to it, chances are you are beginning to deal with end-of-life issues regarding your elderly parents. Your many considerations run the gamut from the practical to the spiritual and everything in between. So, where do you begin?

Caregivers. Imagine if we ended our lives as babies, completely dependent on a caregiver tending to all of our needs: loving us, feeding us, changing our diapers. Imagine now that we are not as cute as little babies but still have the same need to be cared for gently with love and respect. Who would you want to take care of you in this situation? Who do your parents want to care for them? This question should be posed directly to your parents. Don’t assume you know the answer. What they may have said 10 to 15 years ago may not still hold true today as they are closer to facing their mortality.

Finances. As we know, in our society it’s considered impolite to ask someone about their finances. Many adult children hesitate to inquire about the exact state of their parents’ finances for fear that their parents will think that the real questions is about potential future inheritance money. But it’s extremely important to have an honest discussion about finances at this point in life. First of all, you need to know if your parents have long-term care insurance. This is the only type of insurance that pays for future assistance that may be needed in the performance of activities of daily living. And, as the name implies, it helps cover the cost of long-term care usually for an undetermined length of time. Long-term care insurance combined with your parents’ net worth, any financial assistance from family, and personal preferences will all factor in to determining where and how your parents live out their final years.

Memoirs. The written word is a way for us to live on beyond this lifetime. Encourage your parents to share their unique stories on paper. My great grandfather actually typed his life story and had it bound in leather and embossed in gold leaf. My brother, sister, and I cherish it and each wish we had our own copy.

Legal Instruments. A living trust is a very important instrument for any family with assets to bequeath. Its main purpose is to avoid probate. Much of a family’s estate can be lost through probate; setting up a living trust is a way to prevent such a loss. It is best to hire an attorney to set up a living trust tailored to your family’s specific needs.

The next consideration is to find out to whom your parents have given or intended to give power of attorney. Power of attorney assigns power to an individual to act on your behalf to handle all of your legal and business matters in the event that you are unable to do this for yourself.

Lastly, an advance directive is a legal instrument prepared in advance by an individual. It gives health care instructions to your care providers in the event you are unable to conduct such matters on your own. A living will, power of attorney, health care proxy, and Five Wishes are all forms of an advance directive.

Possessions. A Last Will and Testament is the instrument to be prepared by your parents to assign care for their dependents, if any. This can include pets as well. Also, this is the legal mechanism through which they can identify one or more persons to manage their estate and provide instructions for the distribution of their personal possessions. This includes everything from real estate and expensive jewelry to the simplest sentimental items. Funeral and burial instructions can also be outlined here. Although this is a legal document, completing one can give great comfort to your parents, giving them control and certainty over one aspect of their lives.

Final Messages. Encourage your parents to write letters to each of their children if they feel comfortable doing so. Some families even make audio or video recordings of their elders. It can be about anything – a full life story, funny anecdotes, family stories, or loving good-byes to each of their children. My husband’s grandmother came to this country from Armenia and she recounted her tumultuous life on CD. He cherishes it and plans to share it with our children when they are older.

Your parents are entering a time of life where many people feel particularly vulnerable. This can be especially difficult for parents who are used to being in charge and may not be comfortable at all with the reversal of roles. Please keep that in mind as you gather information from them and help them create a plan for the future. If done tactfully and respectfully, this time of life can bring you closer to your parents than ever before.

Katie B. Marsh is co-author of The Birth of Dying: A Sensitive Workbook to Help You Broach and Explore End-of-Life Issues with Your Terminally Ill or Elderly Loved One http://BooksForSharing.com/

(c) Copyright – Katie B. Marsh. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Katie_B._Marsh

Visit www.californialongtermcare.com for information and assistance with long term care insurance in California.

Long Term Care Insurance in Estate Planning: A Key Piece to the Puzzle

When people reach their fifties, they typically begin to consider estate planning. One of the main elements which needs to be taken into account during this planning, is the living will. It is a vital part that gives you and your family peace of mind for whatever circumstances may happen. The living will is not something that will be necessarily easy for yourself or your family, since it confronts you with your own mortality. However, it is essential in order to have your wishes carried out on your behalf and to have your care covered financially. 

What is a Living Will?

If something should happen to you, it is essential that your relatives are informed about your wishes. This is what a living will is for; it displays your wishes regarding prolonging medical treatments. It informs your relatives, but also healthcare workers, if you are no longer capable of conveying your wishes.

A living will is usually supported by two physicians, declaring their support when you are suffering from a terminal illness or permanent vegetative state. It is also a document that can give someone power of attorney when you are no longer capable of making decisions about your current quality of life and medical treatments. This might be a difficult conversation with the person you will be entrusting this to, but again, it is essential to ensure the comfort and peace of mind for your family and loved ones. Even though it is a difficult thing to discuss, you must make sure that someone is aware of your living will. If nobody knows, it will be of no use when something happens to you. Once you write your living will, you need to ensure it is financially covered.

What is Long Term Care Insurance and the benefits?

Long Term Care Insurance will cover medical costs, and even home care, something most medical insurance plans do not cover. When you encounter serious medical costs at a point later in life, it might eat up your entire pension and even your savings. So why not prepare yourself for these types of scenarios? Make sure you are covered, but also make sure your family is protected by choosing a long term care insurance plan.

Role of Long term care insurance in estate planning

We cannot predict what will happen in our lives. We could become gravely ill and encounter serious medical costs. We could even be in need of a live-in health professional. Although these are things we do not like to think about, we want to be prepared if the worst does happen.

The long term care insurance helps to pay for assisted living, nursing facilities or even physiotherapy if you have been injured in a serious accident. It also covers illnesses such as Alzheimer’s. You won’t have to worry about paying for a care worker that will help you or a relative bath, dress and even eat. The long term care insurance plan will be there in your time of need and not take away the hard earned money that you have been saving for years. Including long term insurance in your living will, as a means of covering potential costs for you and your family in the future, is a key piece to the estate planning puzzle.

To speak to a representative or schedule an appointment, simply fill out the form to the right to contact us.

Affordable California Long Term Care Insurance Premiums

Affordable LTCI Premiums

Katie O’ Rourke
Managing Partner

My husband and I are in our fifties.  A few years ago we were looking for affordable California Long Term Care premiums. We did our research,  decided to take the plunge and purchased Long Term Care insurance (LTCI).  Most of our friends are in the same age range.  I am often asked at social events how much the yearly premium is and people are surprised to hear that our premiums for our plans are $100 each per month. 

The average premium for LTCI is between $150 – $300 per month.  Everyone I talk to has heard that LTCI is expensive and expects to hear a number much higher. However, with the help of a licensed agent, you can find affordable California Long Term Care Insurance for around $150 per month.  

The premium depends on many factors. For example my car insurance could be a lot more expensive than it is but I chose coverage that keeps the premium lower and searched for discounts that would help, like a good student discount for our teenager.  LTCI is similar.  Some companies offer better deals than others depending on your situation.  Your health and marital status can impact the premium.  However, the biggest factor besides the coverage you select is your age; the younger you are when you purchase LTCI the lower the premium you pay throughout your lifetime. 

Besides the peace of mind, another thing that helps us my husband and I feel better about purchasing LTCI is that the premiums are tax deductible as a business expense. 

What I want you to take away from this blog is despite the conventional thinking, affordable California Long Term Care Insurance premiums are possible. We can find the best plan for your budget and give you details on the tax treatment for individuals and businesses.

To speak to a representative or schedule an appointment, simply fill out the form to the right to contact us.

Long Term Care Insurance and Healthcare Professionals

Ask most any nurse, doctors, or health care professionals the value of long-term care planning, and you are bound to get stories of joy, love, compassion, perseverance. Ask again, and you may get the stories of sadness, desperation, fear, and frustration felt by the families that failed to plan.

Healthcare professionals have a unique perspective on Long Term Care planning. Faced with daily exposure to illness, injury, disease, and the effects of old age that create a long-term care need makes them more inclined to think “what if?” about their planning needs.

Interestingly, if you were to take a random survey of those that had long-term care plans in place against those that do not, you would most likely find health care professionals do not have any plan in place, or have an inadequate or overpriced plan through their employer or group.

Some organizations (hospitals, unions…etc.) offer a negotiated group offering for Long-term care protection to healthcare professionals but this is not always the best rate available to them. It is highly recommend that before committing to group coverage, health professionals should consult with an independent agency to explore all their options.

In addition, with the constant advances in medical science, people are surviving more conditions than in the past, but facing an increased need for ongoing care. Protecting your choices for ongoing care with long-term care plans is where you make the best decision.

There are some basic considerations when thinking about long-term care planning. Healthcare professionals are often advised about patient’s Living Wills. A living will tells which treatment you want if your life is threatened, including Dialysis and breathing machines, resuscitation if you stop breathing or if your heart stops, and/or tube feeding.

Often, patients and their families will reveal information about their intentions for long-term caregiving too. Unfortunately, many times patients and families will ask for advice because no plans have been made for how to manage a long-term care event or how to pay for it.

The government reports that 70% of people that reach age 65 will have a long-term care event during their remaining lifetime. The majority of the people needing care will be woman. Also noteworthy is that 37% of people needing long-term care services are under 65.

Nurses are a particularly vulnerable group because their job demands can create musculoskeletal problems. The American Nurses Association published a report in 2011 that showed 42% of nurses surveyed had been injured on the job at least once in the last 12 months.

Healthcare professionals are often motivated to pursue their chosen field because of their motivation to help. That generous spirit can be a burden late in life for even the most generous.

For this reason we find that we have had a significant number of people from the healthcare field investigate Long Term Care plans and make those plans part of their safety and security. A Long Term Care plan secures their income, assets and futures. Take a moment today and see how simple planning for long-term care can be: fill out the form to the right for your free guide.

Do Long Term Care Insurance Numbers Make Sense for The Policyholder?

According to a recent article published by the National Association of Health Underwriters it was disclosed that, “a 60-year-old who pays premiums through age 82 (on a statistically representative policy), then show how 22-years of premium payments would quickly be returned after just five months on claim. By comparison, a 60-year-old without insurance would have to set aside $1,666 each month (at 2% interest) to achieve what our LTCI policyholder can leverage with just $188 per month” (Forman, 2015, pp 4-5).

Additional statistics were given in this article that spoke to the growth of long term care insurance numbers, not only in California, but also across the country. As it stands right now, there is an estimated face value of policies in force that is $1.98 Trillion Dollars. The NAHU article talks about the long-term care industry and claims experience, based on the total face value premium of just under 2 Trillion, it is estimated that just under $700 Billion Dollars of claims will be paid out on the current policies in force. The article offers a comparison to its most recent statistic that in the US, in 2010 roughly $210 Billion Dollars was paid out in long term care insurance claims.

It is clear that the long term care insurance need is in growth mode as more and more baby boomers begin looking at their future, and more importantly, the quality of care they will receive when no longer able to care for themselves independently, or with a little assistance. Long term care insurance is not always the most fun conversation to have, and with the complex and often confusing system in California, it can be an uphill battle.

It is important when planning your future to consider the help of a licensed and qualified professional. You already use doctors to help you heal, accountants to help you with financial records, and attorneys to assist with legal concerns; it is time to enlist the help of a California long-term care specialist so you can make an educated decision about your future health care needs.

Fill out the form to the right, get your guide to LTCI and contact your California Long Term Care Specialist today and get started with your planning. This service is Free!

Reference:

Forman, S.D., (June 2015) “Dog Bites Man”, National Association of Health Underwriters, retrieved 08/02/2015 at http://newsmanager.commpartners.com/nahultci/issues/2015-06-16/3.html