The U.S. Department on Aging estimates that 40% of those over the age of 65 will face at least one stay in a long-term-care facility. If you and your spouse are both over 65, the chance that at least one of you will face a long-term stay rises to 70%.
Nationally the average daily cost for a private room in a nursing home is $192.00 or $70,080 annually. The average daily rate for a semiprivate room in a nursing home is $169.00 or $61,658 annually. The average hourly rate for a Home Health Aides provided by a home care agency is $18 per hour; and with inflation at a rate of almost 6% a year, the cost will double in ten years. Long-term care is the single biggest threat to whatever wealth an older person has.
Medicaid pays 50 percent of expenses for long term care nationwide, but it pays only to help the "justifiably poor". Justifiably poor means those who have already spent down their assets to be at or below their state's poverty level. Medicaid pays only for skilled nursing care (care provided by registered nurses and supervised by physicians) the least used form of long-term care. It does not pay for intermediate or custodial care that most nursing homes provide or for home health care, the fastest growing type of care.
The goal of the Long Term Care Info Page is to help answer some of your Long Term Care questions and help you shop for Long Term Care Insurance. Long Term Care insurance can help you and your family to maintain your financial independence if you have purchased a policy which gives you enough protection to do so. In general, you should purchase as much coverage as you can reasonably afford. Your goals and the goals of long term care insurance should be compatible. A wide variety of long term care insurance policies underwritten by some of the very best insurance companies are available from some of the top insurance companies in the country. Determine your needs, then shop wisely.
Long Term Care insurance is one other way you may pay for long-term care. This type coverage will pay for some or all of your long-term care services. You can buy Individual Policies or policies through your employer. In shopping individual policies you will find that the benefits can be quite different from one company to the next. Be sure to shop companies to find what coverage best fits your needs. Your employer may offer a group long term care plan or individual policy at a group discount. One advantage of an employer group plan is you may not have to meet any medical requirements to get a policy; although the cost is generally higher with an employer group plan, it can be well worth the difference if you have medical problems. If you have good health, I would strongly suggest your comparing individual plans to your group sponsored plan.
Before you buy, find out if you need LTC at http://www.clcweb.com/
