Long Term Nursing Care is becoming the most costly medical expense and is called the “Crisis of the Baby Boomer Generation”. Long term care is required when age, illness or disability requires a person to become dependent on others for help with “activities of daily living” or ADL’s. These ADL’s are bathing, dressing, walking, eating, toileting, ambulating and transferring. This level of care is known as “custodial care” which Medicare and private medical insurance plans fail to cover. Long term care for the elderly is the greatest hidden threat to family assets in the American health care system. Many people will lose their assets simply because they “assumed” they were covered.

Long-Term Care provides for the day-in, day-out assistance you need when a serious illness or disability renders you unable – physically or cognitively – to care for yourself for a lengthy period of time. Long-term care can be provided at home or at a nursing facility, assisted living or alternate care facility.

In keeping with the trend toward home health care options, the Long-Term Care plans I broker provide a range of services to help you live comfortably in your preferred environment. Each plan also prepares for the eventuality that your needs may someday require a nursing facility, for your own well being.

Is Long Term Care Right For You?
Take a moment to consider the following statistics from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:

• 60% of people over age 65 will require long-term care during their lifetime.
  (Washington Post, April 1996)
• Medicare and Medicaid will pay only a fraction of the costs of long-term care
  (Department of Health and Human Services, 1991)
• The average cost of nursing home care is about $150 per day. The average stay is 2½ years, which translates to a total cost of about $135,000 per stay.
  (Department of Health and Human Services, 2002).

Investing in a long-term care plan represents an important step toward securing peace of mind and financial security in the most important years of your life. Your plan should provide you with maximum protection against the potentially catastrophic costs of long-term health care while enabling you to help preserve your resources.

What about Medicare and Medicaid?

It is a common misconception that Medicare and Medicaid will cover the costs of long-term care. The reality is that the percentages each source contributes to the costs of long-term care today are:

Medicare: 8%
Medicaid: 45%

This leaves you responsible for paying the other half of the expenses, $67,500 on average, based on the Department of Health and Human Services statistics above.

Please don’t assume! Contact me for a free review.

Taking the time now for “Planning Ahead” will assure you and your family that you can pay for the best of care and at the same time protect your property and life savings from being consumed by a debilitating illness. Your home and the family nest egg you worked so hard for all your life should be left to your children instead of using them to pay for costly long term care medical or custodial assistance.