Long-term care insurance can help you or your senior loved one prepare for the future.
Regular health care insurance does not cover the care or services needed when seniors have chronic medical conditions, disabilities, or neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease.
Waiting too long to buy long-term care insurance decreases acceptance chances. Once a senior has developed a condition or disorder, or reaches the age of 75, they will not qualify for coverage.
To learn more about the legal and financial aspects of senior living, check out the recording from our virtual event “Navigating the Legal & Financial Maze of Senior Living: Without Getting Lost!”
With April being Financial Literacy Month, The Kensington Falls Church was proud to partner with Delores Athey, Alicia Fonseca, John Bennett, and Dave Knasel.
Topics covered during this event were:
- The Tax Benefits of Assisted Living
- Ways to Make Assisted Living More Affordable
- Long Term Care Insurance
- Advanced Care Planning
- The Importance of POAs
- The Difference Between Conservatorship and Guardianship
What defines long-term care?
Long-term care includes medical and non-medical care services provided to adults and seniors unable to complete activities of daily living (ADLs).
When seniors cannot perform everyday tasks on their own, such as bathing and dressing, cooking, and cleaning, they will require assistance.
70 percent of seniors can expect to use some form of long-term care due to the natural process of aging, an illness, or neurodegenerative disease.
Depending on how severe a senior’s condition is, they may receive long-term care at home, adult care centers, and in assisted living and memory care communities.
Needs vary from senior to senior, so long-term care will be individualized and focus on what specific services are needed to promote your seniors’ independence and quality of life.
Long-term care planning
Long-term care can be expensive, so it’s essential to determine how you and your senior loved one will cover medical needs early on.
While speaking to your parents or other family members about long-term care and finances may be challenging, it’s the best way to understand how you will care for them when the time comes.
Perhaps your senior loved one wants to remain in their home for as long as possible and depends on your caregiver services.
Or maybe they would prefer to transition to an assisted living community so they have opportunities to socialize. These are things a caregiver should know.
Sometimes seniors have unexpected accidents or develop illnesses or diseases, and there won’t be much time to plan.
Planning ahead of time prevents uncertainty and last-minute decisions, which are often costly.
What are the main goals of long-term care?
When a senior needs long-term care, caregivers and professionals will support them in multiple ways, depending on their care needs.
Maintaining a senior’s health and independence while keeping them safe is generally a top priority.
A senior may need physical, occupational, and speech therapy to improve their quality of life, medications, and walking and assistive devices.
At an enhanced assisted living and memory care community that provides high acuity care, your senior loved one will receive daily assistance with meals and personal care and find comfort in music and pet therapies.
Allowing your senior to age in place while receiving long-term care will improve their quality of life.
How does long-term care insurance work?
At some point, your senior loved one will likely need long-term care, making long-term care insurance critical.
Your senior will need to fill out an application and answer health questions to purchase long-term care insurance. Their potential insurer will also want to see medical records and speak with them directly.
During this process, seniors will typically choose the amount of coverage they want, and once they are approved, begin paying premiums. In that sense, long-term care insurance works like an automobile and house insurance policy.
When the time comes, and your senior loved one needs long-term care, they will need to make a claim. Once their claim is approved and they have paid out of pocket for a certain amount of time, they will be reimbursed.
How to buy long-term care insurance?
There are multiple ways to purchase long-term care policies.
It’s most common for people to get insurance directly from an insurance agent, a financial planner, or a broker. If you or your senior take this route, you can get quotes from several companies and compare prices.
Another way to buy long-term care insurance is through state partnership programs. To find out more about these programs and what your state offers, you must check with your state’s insurance department.
Employers may also provide long-term care insurance at favorable group rates. It’s often easier to obtain long-term care insurance this way than the others.
Making financial decisions can be easier when discussing your options with our team at The Kensington Falls Church. Our partnership with Planning for Senior Life has educated us in long-term care insurance, affording medical care, and housing.
Is long-term care insurance tax deductible?
When long-term care insurance premiums exceed 7.5% of a seniors adjusted growth income, they are tax-deductible.
Policies for those who qualify are categorized as medical expenses, offering tax advantages to seniors.
Some seniors have opted out of purchasing a long-term care insurance policy because of the premiums that would need to be paid over the years. This is why states use tax deductions and tax credits as an incentive to purchase long-term care insurance.
In the long run, buying long-term care coverage can save you, and your senior loved one money.
The Kensington Falls Church – your partners in care
At The Kensington Falls Church, our team works with our residents and their families to create individualized care plans and assist them with their financial decisions.
To help our residents maintain their health, we offer a full spectrum of care, on-site rehabilitation services, life-enrichment activities, exceptional dining, and socialization opportunities.
Our Promise is to love and care for your family as we do our own, which means offering residents comfort, support, safety, and respect.
Call us today to learn more about our assisted living and memory care communities, services, amenities, and resources.