Long Term Care Insurance
7 out of 10 people over the age of 65 will need some type of long-term care support
66%
of caregivers used their own retirement and savings funds to pay for care
More than half of Americans surveyed say having a spouse is their long-term care insurance.
100%
of their families are affected in some way
Long-term care events happen to a family,
not just a person
The Basics of Long-Term Care
Long term care is an event not a place
Long-term care is a range of services and support designed to meet your health or personal care needs during a short or long period of time. Most long-term care needs do not relate to medical care aid, but rather assistance with the Activities of Daily Living (ADL). A need for long term care may result from accidents, illnesses, advancing aging, stroke, or other chronic conditions such as cognitive illnesses, like dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
The goal of long-term care is to help you maintain your lifestyle as you age. Medicare, Medicare supplement insurance, and the health insurance you may have at work usually won’t pay for long term care.
The need for long term care impacts the entire family, not just the person requiring care. For example, if your son or daughter is taking care of you, it may bring you closer together in some way. But providing that care can be time-consuming, stressful, or exhausting for a caregiver. It also takes them away from their own obligations including their children, their spouses, and their job.
What are the activities of daily living
The Activities of Daily Living are a series of basic activities necessary for independent living at home or in the community. They are performed on a daily basis. There are many variations on the definition of the ADLs, but most agree there are 6 basic categories.
The level of independence is based on whether someone can perform these activities on their own or they need help from a family caregiver.
Bathing
Dressing
Caring for incontinence
Using the toilet
Transferring
Eating
Where do you receive care?
When most people think of long-term care, they think of a nursing home. The truth is long-term care encompasses a variety of settings, including home health care and assisted living facilities.
Long-term care and nursing home care are not the same thing.
Home Care
and support services to help people stay at home and live as independently as possible.
Examples of home care services include:
- An unpaid caregiver who may be a family member or friend
- A nurse, home health or home care aide, and/or therapist who comes to the home
- Help with personal care, such as help with bathing, dressing
- taking medications
- Supervision to make sure a person is safe
Community support services include:
- Adult day care service centers
- Transportation services
- Home care agencies that provide services on a daily basis or as needed
Often these services supplement the care you receive at home or provide time off for your family caregivers.
Assisted living/Memory Care,
In assisted living facilities, residents are provided with 24-hour supervision, including meals, assistance with daily activities, and healthcare services—in a home-like setting. Common services include assistance with:
- Eating
- Bathing
- Dressing
- Using the bathroom
- Taking medication
- Transportation
- Housekeeping
Assisted living facilities offer all of these services, and more, in a comfortable setting where social and recreational activities are also provided.
Skilled Nursing
Residents staying in nursing homes generally have complex medical needs and require a higher level of care than individuals living in retirement communities or assisted living. Typically, residents of nursing homes will share a room and enjoy their meals in a central dining area. Recreational activities are also common. These facilities provide skilled nursing care for residents, including rehabilitation services, activities, meals, supervision, and more
For those who can no longer maintain their independence or be cared for in their home, nursing homes are a viable option..
Home Care
Ideal location for people suffering with Dementia and Alzheimers
For those suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s, 24-hour support is a given for this kind of care facility. Memory care is usually provided in an assisted living setting, but may also be offered in nursing homes and occasionally, personal care homes.
- Memory Care locations Help with ADLs
- Meal service
- Medication management
- Care coordination
- Housekeeping and laundry services
- Exercise classes
- Transportation to appointments
- Specialized care for dementia and memory loss
- 24-hour care and supervision
- Secured entrances and exits to prevent wandering
- Memory-enhanced therapies
- High staff-to-patient ratio
- Unique layouts to reduce confusion
Know the costs
When planning for long-term care, it’s important to consider the costs associated with the type of care you may want, which may vary based on the level of care offered, location and quality of the facility.
To explore the costs of care in your area visit https://www.whatcarecosts.com/lincoln.
LONG-TERM CARE LOCATIONS
NATIONAL MONTHLY AVERAGE COST
Home Health Aid
May be part or full time, depending on an individual's needs.
$5,302
Assisted living*,
Designed to assist those with minimal needs and keep them as independent as possible.
$4,730
Skilled nursing home
Offers temporary or permanent services for those who need more medical-based care, such as rehabilitation or help with respirators.
$8,790
What Do Long-Term Care Plans Cover?
You Stay in control
Where Do You Want To Be?
- At Home
- Assisted Living
- Memory Care
- Adult Day Care
- Adult Family Home
- Nursing Home
Who Can Help You
- Custodial
- Respite
- Hospice
- Therapy (Physical, Occupational, Speech)
- Informal Caregiver
- Skilled nursing care
- Homemaker services
What Do Long-Term Care Plans Cover?
You Stay in control
Where Do You Want To Be?
- At Home
- Assisted Living
- Memory Care
- Adult Day Care
- Adult Family Home
- Nursing Home
Who Can Help You
- Custodial
- Respite
- Hospice
- Therapy (Physical, Occupational, Speech)
- Informal Caregiver
- Skilled nursing care
- Homemaker services
Who should consider long-term care planning?
If you want to
- Stay in your own home for as long as possible and avoid nursing home care.
- Stay in control of your care options and avoid becoming a ward of the State.
- Avoid liquidating assets and paying unnecessary taxes.
- not burden children or family with caregiving responsibilities
- protect retirement assets for themselves as well as for a spouse, partner and children
The best way to save assets, preserve your choice and protect your family’s well-being is to find a solution before Long Term Care is needed. Through innovative strategies, you can protect your assets before a health crisis strikes, leading to a smoother transition to long-term care for both you and your loved ones.
For Pre-retirees
Prepare for what’s ahead.
Considerations
- Children are out of the house, or maybe finishing college
- Mortgage is paid off
- May have cared for, or are caring for, aging parents
Meet Mike and Kathy
We’re on track with our retirement income plan, and our kids are independent. Recently, we became caregivers for Mike’s mom, who had an unforeseen care event. It has been very emotional and more time-consuming than we expected. We want to set aside funds for our own long-term care so that our children won’t need to be responsible for taking care of us.
Their long-term care plan
Mike and Kathy worked with their financial professional and identified assets to reposition. They purchased hybrid long-term care funding solutions. If they need care, they’ll each have income-tax free, long-term care benefits and personalized, complementary services to help alleviate the emotional and financial strain on their children.
Three main questions
- What is our plan if either of us experience an extended healthcare event?
- Which of our retirement income sources or assets could we liquidate to pay for long-term care?
- How can we prevent our children from needing to take care of us?
Considerations
- Focusing how to protect income streams to last through retirement
- Looking forward to spending time with family and grandchildren
- Starting to take required minimum distributions (RMDs)
Meet Tom
Retirement is going great, and I am enjoying spending time with my family. Although I have sufficient retirement savings, I’m unsure that my income stream could sustain a long-term care event. I want to be sure I’m prepared for the unexpected so that I won’t strain my loved ones with additional responsibilities.
Tom’s long-term care plan
Tom and his financial professional selected a hybrid long-term-care funding solution that protects his retirement income and legacy from the rising costs of care and tax-inefficiencies. Additionally, his family can rest assured knowing that he has a comprehensive plan in place that will provide dedicated resources and support if he does need care.
Three main questions
- What would happen to my income stream if I need care?
- Would I be comfortable having my loved ones change their lifestyles to take care of me?
- Would I be able to reposition my assets to cover the cost of extended healthcare event?
For Affluent investors
Help optimize your tax efficiency and protect your legacy.
What you need to consider now
- Funding children’s or grandchildren’s educations
- Maxing out retirement plan options
- Looking for tax advantages, including gifting strategies
Meet John and Sally
We’re confident in our retirement income plan and have been fortunate enough to have substantial savings. While we would be able to cover the costs of a long-term care event, we would prefer to have a tax-efficient solution to protect our income and the legacy we want to leave our children.
Their long-term care plan
In order to have a tax-efficient strategy, John and Sally added hybrid long-term care funding solutions to their portfolios. If one or both of them needs care, they’ll have protected their income stream from tax erosion and faster draw down. If they don’t need care, they’ll be able to provide additional legacy to their children.
3 Main Questions
- How much faster would we spend our savings if we needed to pay for long-term care services?
- What would happen to our legacy if one or both of us needs care?
- How would our portfolio be impacted if one of us had an extended health event?
Long-term care coverage is triggered in one of two ways:
- Cognitive impairment such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Dementia, or severe memory loss, etc. OR
The inability to perform 2 of 6 activities of daily living (ADLs)
(Transferring, Toileting, Bathing, Dressing, Eating, Continence)
How is Long-Term Care Paid Out?
Think of long-term care insurance as a bucket of money that you can access to pay for care when needed. Most policies will reimburse you up to a set rate based on either a daily amount or a monthly amount. Any unspent money remains in the policy for future use.
Many policies describe a term such as three years of coverage. However, that simply describes the minimum amount of time the policy will last if you are pulling out the maximum amount of money from.
Example: If you have a policy that pays $200/day for 3 years, you have total bucket of money of $216,000.
If you only use $100/day for care, that same policy will last 6 years instead of 3.
If you opt for Asset Based Coverage you also have the following benefits.
Benefits if you need long term care
Income tax free
reimbursements for qualified
long term care expenses
A Benefits if you don't
Income tax free death benefit
Return of Premium
Never use your benefits, and
surrender your policy for a
Full return of premium
The Two Types of Long-Term Care Coverage
Traditional
Long Term Care Insurance
This yearly premium option gives you coverage when you need it. Link to more information
Hybrid/ Asset-Based- No one wants their money to go to waste
Life or Annuity + Long Term Care
With a yearly or one time investment you will get long term care insurance plus a cash benefit to your family if you never need care. Your money never goes to waste. Link to more information
Considering paying for long-term care out of pocket or just leaving it to chance
How much income you have is even more important than how many assets you have
Mark and Kathy have a combined savings of $1.5 million. They are comfortable living on
their total income of $7,800 a month. However, when Paul gets diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Kathy needs help with his care. She starts investigating options. To her dismay, she realizes they can not afford to
Self-pay as they had thought because they weren’t thinking about it in terms of income.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING…
Let us take care of everything!
Become empowered with flexible choices that help you access the best care and keep the financial security you deserve.
Schedule a discovery call
To share your situation with us. We’re here to listen and guide you to make the best choices that fit your specific needs.
We’ll prepare a comprehensive plan
To help you plan ahead, become eligible for Medicaid or find other long-term care options that will maximize your assets in creative ways.
Take a deep breath
knowing that you’ve secured the best situation possible, while you or your loved one is taken care of for life.
Knowledge to empower you:
Medicaid Do’s & Don’ts: 5 Critical Mistakes People Make When Applying For Medicaid
3 Ways To Save $70,000 and more On Long Term Care
Feel at peace knowing you’re making the best, informed financial decisions for yourself or your loved one.
Nobody should lose their life savings to pay for their care. The right guidance can get you the best care without going broke or uprooting your life.
