What is long-term care insurance?
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Before we can answer this question, we must first tell you a bit about long-term care.
Long term care is a combination of services directed toward meeting the needs of someone who, due to reduced physical functioning and/or reduced intellectual functioning is unable to carry out every-day tasks without the help of another person.
Long term care goes beyond medical and nursing care to include all the assistance you could need if you ever have a chronic illness or disability that leaves you unable to care for yourself for an extended period of time – generally over 3 months. You can receive long-term care in a nursing home, assisted living facility, or in your own home. Though older people use the most long-term care services, a young or middle-aged person who has been in an accident or suffered a debilitating illness might also need long-term care.
Beyond nursing homes, there is a range of services available in the community to help meet long-term care needs. Visiting nurses, home health aides, friendly visitor programs, home-delivered meals, chore services, adult daycare centers, and respite services for caregivers who need a break from daily responsibilities can supplement care given by family members.
In order to fund some of the costs of long-term care and hopefully preserve assets, people are increasingly buying long-term care insurance. Long term care insurance is an insurance product which pays for long term care services in many settings, such as at home, a nursing home, assisted living facility, and adult day care facility.
Many people elect to buy long term care insurance so they will not need to deplete their savings should they need long term care services. Long term care insurance can help ensure that financial resources and support are in place when you need them.
How does long-term care insurance work? First, you must apply for coverage. If you are approved for coverage, pay your premiums, and you meet the insurance carrier’s criteria for benefit payment, you will be reimbursed for covered long term care services up to the amount of daily benefit after you satisfy the waiting period in the insurance policy (most policies do not pay benefits until after a waiting period, commonly called an elimination or a deductible period. That means benefits begin 20, 30, 60, 90 or 100 days after you are admitted to a nursing home. Some policies have no elimination period and they naturally cost more).
Why you should consider long-term care insurance. Long term care insurance can help you safeguard your assets and protect your financial stability and is a critical tool in helping you with the high cost of long term care services.
If you’re interested in receiving a free long term care insurance quote from multiple companies, please visit our sponsor, 4FreeQuotes by clicking here.
Be sure to return to this blog to check for helpful tips, insights and resources on long-term care insurance. Also, for more information on long-term care insurance and other retirement planning strategies, please visit Soundview Financial’s Retirement Savings Guide.
December 1, 2007 at 9:42 pm
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