Long Term Care: Putting Your Family at Ease
There are several factors that must be considered when dealing with the high cost of nursing care for a loved one in an extended care facility or in a home environment. Many people believe that one of two government programs, Medicare or Medicaid will immediately step-in and pay for an individual’s long-term care in a long-term care facility. The fact is that each of the government programs pays something but there are specific circumstances that govern what will be paid and how much will be paid and when it will be paid.
The critical mistake that many individuals and families make is to underestimate the costs of long-term care and overestimate the amount of public funding available to pay those costs.
In addition, it is easy for healthy individuals to assume that they will never require long term care. The “I’m invincible” component plays a large part in this type of thinking. However, the world changes dramatically when cancer, heart disease, or a stroke enters the picture.
The solution to funding the high cost of long-term care in the future must be shouldered by everyone because of the low probability that government funding will be available. Therefore, long term care insurance is the most obvious choice because it accomplishes two primary goals A) long term care expenses are paid either for care in a facility or at home, and B) a person does not have to liquidate all their assets in order to pay the costs. In the end, having long term care insurance can help provide a sense of security to families.
A complete statement of coverage, including exclusions, exceptions, and limitations, is found only in the policy. It should be noted that carriers have the discretion to raise their rates and remove their products from the marketplace