More and more people today are worried about the costs of long-term health care. They are worried if something happens to them they may run out of money and burn thru their reserves. The average nursing home stay is 2.5 years of care and the average cost is over $130.00 per day. That is the average yet in many areas with nursing shortages and higher income demographics the rates are more significant. It is estimated that more than 10% of us who reach age 65 will nursing home care for more than 5-years.

It is very important to have long-term health care insurance to:

Protect your assets

Provide peace of mind

Provide assurance of quality care

Provide choice and control over receipt of care

Avoid dependence

Receive tax advantages

Paying for Long-Term Care? Here is The Bottom Line:

Medicare - This program may pay for skilled nursing facility care for a very short period of time - but no longer than 100 days - and only when you meet all the Medicare requirements for daily skilled care.

Medi-Cal - This program, called Medicaid outside California, may pay for skilled, rehabilitation and custodial care that is not covered by Medicare, but only if you first “spend-down” assets to federal and state legal impoverishment level guidelines.

Personal or Family Assets - Most people provide for long-term care expenses from personal or family income, assets and resources.

Long-Term Care Insurance Programs - Specially designed programs to pay for long-term health care expenses. HIPAA defines Federal tax treatment of insurance policies that provide long-term care coverage. Policies that meet certain criteria are designated as “qualified long-term care insurance” and will receive certain tax incentives: the cost of coverage may be deductible and long term care benefits received will not be reported as taxable income. Please consult your tax advisor for information about your personal situation.

Play it safe and know your options regarding long-term health care and know protect your assets. Think on this.