What does insurance for long-term care cover? In some cases, this is a very clear answer. Let's not put the responsibility of taking care of others on our kids, who have their own lives to live. The other answer that makes sense is to protect one's assets. The more years we live, the more likely it is that we will need long-term care at some point. Let's look at both of these places.
Since I grew up in a family where my mother took care of my grandmother after she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, I can agree with many people who do not want or will not put their own children in danger by making them a caregiver.
Before my grandmother went to a 24-hour skilled care facility, I helped take care of her for about two years and saw her age by about ten years. This made a big impression on me and is something I will never forget.
Besides taking care of your own children's problems, there is one other thing that sticks out in my mind. That is the choice you have to make about your own care or the care of your spouse.
Most people would rather spend as much time as possible at home. Long-term care insurance is one way to do this without using family money or time to care for the person. Let's face it: an LTC event is expensive, both in terms of your mind and your money. Long-term care facilities can cost up to $90,000 for a year's stay. In the next 10 to 15 years, that price will go up a lot. Without long-term care insurance, you don't have many options unless you have a lot of money. A better option than having everything taken away is to have a plan that can give you money and a sense of being in charge.
Second, your property is being kept safe. There are three main things that happen with money: getting it, keeping it safe, and spending it.
Phase of building up
In the accumulation phase, you work your whole life to build up money for retirement and to give to your children and grandchildren. Without Long Term Care insurance, something like Alzheimer's or a Stroke could definitely put this stash of money in danger.
Phase of protection
The protection phase of money is exactly what it sounds like: it protects what you have worked for and earned over the years. LTC insurance is not a cost. Instead, it is a simple way to protect your assets so they are there when you need them. If you lose these assets because of an LTC event, you and/or your spouse could be poor for many years to come. Not to mention that you won't be able to give your heirs anything when the money is given out.
With Long Term Care insurance, you have a real chance of having choices, being well taken care of, not being a burden on your kids, and being able to live out your retirement the way you are used to.
In the end, long-term care insurance does two things. The first is to give money to help pay for a long-term care and event so that we don't have to put this on our family and children. The second is to protect our nest egg from a long-term care event that could wipe out our savings.
