Archive for August, 2010
What You Need to Know About Long Term Care Insurance
What is long term care insurance?
Long term care insurance is a type of health insurance designated to provide care for individuals living with a chronic illness or injury. Long term care insurance provides both medical and non-medical assistance to the insured, whether in a care facility such as a group home or a nursing home or living in their own home and in need of help with their daily care. It differs from other types of care that are covered by traditional insurance coverage because it pays for help with custodial care, or assistance with tasks of everyday living that most people can do for themselves.
It is often a difficult task to begin thinking and talking about long term care insurance. We don’t like to think of ourselves as no longer independent and able to care for ourselves. However, just as with car insurance, life insurance and home owner’s insurance, long term care insurance is an extremely important piece of security and protection for you and your family. You may never need long-term care, but when a disabling injury or illness affects your life it often results in long term effects that prevent you from carrying out your activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, and using the bathroom. This is when it is often necessary to have ongoing help. It can be burdensome or even impossible for family members to provide this level of care on a long term basis. When this is the case, other long term care options may be the most logical choice for your needs.
What Does Long Term Care Insurance Cover?
Long term care insurance is designed to protect you and your loved ones in the event that long term care is needed. Nearly one out of every two persons who are age 65 and older will likely spend some time in a nursing home. The average dollar amount for nursing home expenses per year is $30,000. However, if you live in a major metropolitan area the average costs rises to around $60,000 and in some cases as much as $100,000.
The average stay of a senior in a nursing home is around nineteen months which means those seniors who live in a major metropolitan area would spend $100,000 in long term care in addition to medical expenses and prescriptions. If you have aging parents, or perhaps you are now a senior citizen, long term care insurance may be something you need to consider, because once consumers need the benefits of a long term care policy, they may be physically, emotionally, or mentally disabled and not in a position to assert their rights.