Is long-term care insurance worth it?

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Is long-term care insurance worth it?

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As a caregiver, I now think much more about planning for my own healthcare needs in my elder years. Does anyone have a good experience with long-term care insurance? Is it worth it?

Long Term Care Insurance Paying for Care

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If you can easily qualify for Medicaid, then you don't need long-term care insurance. If you have your financial ducks in a row and are fully funding your retirement accounts each year, then look into getting a policy.

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It depends. Currently helping someone using LTC INs to fund her stay in a
nice Assisted Living Facility. Private funding is required for many of these facilities. If it happens that you will need assistance in your senior years, then I believe it is definitely worth it. Depending on the level of care, these facilities can cost from $3000 thru $9000 currently. I am sure this cost will rise. Wishing you wellness.

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Long term policies have a spending limit. They are good because they WILL pay for home sitter services. However, know the spending limit. Once in a nursing home they will use up the insurance which will be followed by Medicaid. On the average a single nursing home patient is about $90,000 a year. If you can afford it, do it. However, I can't afford it since I'm already spending $700 a month (with a $6,860 deductible) for ordinary Obamacare (that's the cheapest "most affordable" policy I can find). Since I am not eligible for any kind of subsidies being a caregiver (my mom is a full time job and is unpaid) I'm exhausting my savings just for my own healthcare for insurance I never use. I keep Obamacare because you never know what can happen and a single day in the hospital can run a million dollars very easily. Healthcare in America is very hyperinflated and nobody seems to care. Medical science keeps people alive it's no longer unusual to live in the 80's and 90's. Meanwhile Alzheimer's is sharply on the rise -- and the Federal government cannot cope. Did you know Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security entitlements cost the Feds half of the entire budget. The US Military is about 16% of the entire budget including overseas involvement. With aging baby boomers sharply rising..and people living forever..we are doomed.

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I'm sorry, but medicare & social security are NOT entitlements. My parents paid into it & my Mother receives it. I hv been paying into it since I was 17 years old & am 55 now. NOT AN EMTITLEMENT!!

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I live in assisted living with my husband who has LBD with Parkinson's. I needed more help with him than I could get at home. I thank God everyday for our Long Term policy. It pays $7000 a month for us to stay together for five years. I've claimed it for only him, and should we need it, can claim it for me for an additional five years.

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Who is your insurance policy through? Is it still worth it to get it when someone already needs nursing care help?

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I've been looking into too. It doesn't seem worth it. And there are restrictions of when you can begin to use it. I think the asset based plans make more sense, but they are more expensive. There's more freedom to use the money when you want though, and benefit left for your family if you pass away. Talk with several agents. I will say how nice it was for a friend when his mom had Alzheimer's he was able to place her in a nice facility without worrying about cost because she had long term care insurance.

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We had LTC insurance and had been paying the premiums for 4 years. The premiums have gone up 35% in that time so we canceled!! As we are in our mid fifties, we decided to cancel it and put that money in our retirement fund instead. Full time nursing care runs $17,000/month in my area. No joke. My mom is in that facility, on Medicaid. No other way to do it. Less and less insurance companies are offering LTC policies because more and more people are using their LTC insurance and it just isn't profitable to the insurance companies anymore. If we decide to get it later, we will pick a policy that has an equity portion.

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Veterans Aid and Attendance.

Please look into eligibility if spouse or loved one is a veteran there is assistance for home care or assisted living.

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One thing to be aware of is that the veteran has to have served during an “active period of war”, so during the Viet Nam War, Korean War, etc., even if they served stateside, it’s OK as long as it was during a war time. If their service ended one day before or began one day after a war time, they do not qualify. (Learned this the hard way.) Also serving in reserves, etc., does not count.

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However, the next on the chopping block after the tax cuts is cuts to Medicaid and Medicare so I'm not counting on that. My plan is to accumulate a stockpile of lethal drugs..if I am lucid enough to take them. If you want to be cared about in this country, be very wealthy or an embryo.

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I have a life insurance policy that has a long term care rider. If needed, I can use up to $2000/month (amount varies based on the policy amount) to assist in long term care. The down side is that you can only use it up to the amount of the policy and it pulls from the value of the policy. My husband and I will not be able to qualify for Medicaid based on our retirement benefits. Long term care isn’t affordable for us, so this is our best option. Plus with LTC, if you pass away before you need to use it, the money is gone-like car or house insurance if you never file a claim. With this insurance policy at least my beneficiaries will receive the amount of the policy. Hope this offers an alternative solution.

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Mother got scammed. She paid $1,000 per month, for 14 years for LTC with private duty Nurses Aids if she should need it, to the Senior Facility where she also bought her apartment and then they went bankrupt. She lost the equity in her apartment and LTC insurance. Be careful that you use an insurance Co. and not a package with the Senior Facility.

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I’d say the answer entirely lies in the situation you find yourself in, which can’t be predicted as life throws us all curves. My parents had LTC insurance only on my mom, they couldn’t afford it on both and the person who sold it to them said women more likely use it. When she required NH care it kicked in and paid. It was mind blowing how fast it ran out completely, full time nursing home is just that much, even with them taking her SS check also. It was quickly needed for my dad to get her on Medicaid. She spent years on that. So for them, all the LTC insurance did was postpone the time until Medicaid. I can see it working better in other circumstances but it was a waste for my parents.

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Similar situation here but with both my parents being on LTC insurance. The good it did was to get them into a very nice ALF under private pay as their money was spent down. Many places that take Medicaid require a year, two years, or even four years of private pay before they’ll take Medicaid. There’s no way we could have afforded two years of private pay without the LTC benefits.

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My dad took out LTC coverage when my mom passed away when he was 73 since he figured he would have to be cared for in a facility when the time came. His policy paid out $59,000 for 11 months of assisted living before he passed away at 90 years old and having that coverage gave him some peace of mind. Saying that he probably paid more in premiums than he received as a benefit. My husband and I sold a property and we have put the profits in an account to be used for our long term care needs, sort of a self insurance. That made mor sense for us.

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If you use a reputable insurance company and your loved one has assets or a business, or has offspring they want to inherit anything then this is the way to go. I know several people that did benefit from having this type of policy and getting a term rider with it. If you get a term rider on the policy it will pay back most of what you put into it after 15 years or so, and you can continue the policy then without the term rider. Be sure to check into a term rider with a good company.

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Good Luck getting. Turned down in late 40's by multiple companies because i had arthritis in a single joint. Would only qualify if I got a knee replacement which at time medical insurance would not cover.
Since I have become a caregiver for Dad who has LT but they wont pay me since I'm a direct relative and live in same household. Dad keeps paying and is saving for a rainy day. He will be 93 soon. Dads company went under as well but it was protected and in conservership.
I would have wasted my money if I had gotten because I could have not paid premiums.
I would say create your own investment account for medical.

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I recently lost my husband to Alzheimers. He was in a Memory Care Facility and I paid about $3600 out of pocket every month for his care. He was over 80 and did not qualify for LTC when I bought mine. I still have my LTC policy but it only pays up to a years and I'm also wondering if I would be better off putting the money in a money market or some other investment. My older sister tells me to keep my LTC policy as it is like "gold" if I can afford it.

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The odds of a person needing some sort of extended care, whether it be at home or in a facility are about 70 percent. In other words, 7 out of 10 people will need long term care. Yes, long term care insurance is expensive. That's because long term care is expensive. Not only is it expensive, the costs are going up every year. If you self-fund, you need to have a half million set aside for one person, a million for two people. If you plan on going on Medicaid, you should remember that every Tom, Dick, and Sally has the same plan. How long do you think Medicaid will last when all the seniors want to drink out of that cup? As a former insurance agent, I met people every day who said they didn't need/want insurance. I also met people every day who desperately wanted insurance, but couldn't get it because they waited until they needed it. My advice - get it early when it is much cheaper. Don't wait.

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One thought about long-term care comes to mind: we are told that something like a third of people will need such care, but what we aren't told is that many of them might be there a relatively short time (let's say, a couple months) to recover after a surgery, or due to a terminal condition or sudden decline just before death--both of these situations are obviously different from the widow or widower who spends 5 years there and the financial consequences are markedly different.

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My experience with a LTC was not good. My parents both took out a LTC policy in the 90's. My father died at home with cancer and they would not pay for any care as they said Hospice had been called in and that indicated it was not long term care. My mother is in a nursing home with late stage Alzheimer's. This time they said it has to be a skilled nursing facility that has an RN on duty at night. I was unable to find one that fit that requirement. They have an RN on duty during the day but only on call during the night. My parents thought they had everything planned out for their senior years. After all the savings, etc was gone we had to put Mom on Medicaid. After seeing the kind of care she gets thru this, I wouldn't wish that on anyone.

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My 88 yr old mother's LTC policy covers nurse aide but not RN visits. She is medically fragile but still capable of ADLs so she doesn't need the aides yet. She has paid on that policy for years and gets very little out of it.

My insurance broker tried to sell me a LTC plan with the promise that it would "protect my assets". I have no kids of my own so that doesn't interest me. My plan is to sell or rent my house if I have to enter some kind of facility.

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Thankfully my mother's LTC insurance finally kicked in, after she paid premiums for years, but it was difficult to get them to acknowledge her need for care. If she could lift a spoon to her mouth without assistance and pull up her elastic-waist pants after using the toilet, they noted her as independent, even though there was no way she could safely live on her own due to cognitive issues that gravely impacted her judgment, ability to provision and prepare food for herself, etc. Her dementia finally worsened to the point that she flunked a cognitive assessment that they gave (plus I think the assessor who evaluated her was sympathetic). Like all insurance companies, LTC care insurance providers are actively looking for reasons to not pay benefits, which makes the policies less of a sure thing than we might imagine.

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My sis and her husband had it. Paid on it for 15-20 years. He was paralyzed and in a SNF for about a year until she died at home alone. Then, he wanted to move home, where he lived about 45 days. The LTC policy, which had a 6-month waiting period, eventually paid approximately the amount they had paid in premiums, about $25,000. You can't buy coverage at that rate now.
Like all insurance, it's just a bet as to whether you will use it.
Our financial advisor recently pitched us a policy that included $100,000 in life insurance when both of us have died, so if you want to be sure you leave something for your estate, that could be attractive.
We have also considered buying into a CCRC, but then you are limited by their location, services they can provide, and their financial stability.

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Long term care is only worth it if you are strapped and have no really other options when continuing care or if they really don't want to go to a facility but you should pay into it sooner rather than later so you can extend the benefit cap. My gmas policy had up to quarter million in benefit. But the thing with that was they relied on LTC and she is also living off of my late grandfathers s.s. which isn't gonna last. I am no longer her caregiver so I have no clue as to whom is gonna send in hours since I am the only name on the policy along with my grandmother. My mom(gmas daughter) would split the check with us but she never really did ANY care. So as things piled up I felt like a triad sending in hours when the check got split 3 ways and her benefits were being sucked dry. It is only beneficial when it is used sparingly and for rainy days. I feel so bad that we reaped benefits when she needs it when sh** hits the fan. We had State farm so it is most likely more expensive policy but from my experience they have been very helpful and I had no problems with any of MY policies (car etc) except that I am trying to unemesh myself from all my mpthers joint accounts. Weigh out pros and cons of your situation and if it's for further future be sure the money is used wisely. Hope this helps

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Reading all this saddened me. Both my folks have dementia and don’t have a LTC policy. Facility costs in their area run between $6-9k per person per month. Since their savings (for a rainy day) would run out rather quickly at that rate, I kept wishing they had purchased LTC Insurance. I went to get that for myself when I was 52. The premiums for me were $500 a month at that time which were a financial burden since I was plowing through my savings by not working and caring for my folks (unpaid and not eligible for assistance because being paid was based on the assets of the folks and not the caretaker) So I didn’t get the Insurance for myself. So the costs for care and for insurance both will leave me screwed when the time comes. I’m not an embryo or wealthy, and agree that the future will leave me, along with many others in a sad position. Knowing what this illness has done to my parent’s child(me)emotionally, physically, spiritually and financially, made me determined not to burden my kids with me later. LTC isn’t a feasible option, having enough saved (after using what took 30 years to save in 3 years), isn’t looking like a realistic promising option either. Who could ever have predicted the costs that may be needed for medical care down the line? The lethal drug thing is my plan too.

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Fraud**

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LTC insurance are getting better meaning now you can use them as investments if you do not use the funds you have invested. In the past LTC would be use it or loose it kind of deals. I have a home care agency and I help people who have LTC insurance. It is always a relief when they do as this often lift a burden from their shoulders and are able to get the care without worrying about the money. I am planning on hosting an event with one of the company that does offer LTC insurance so we can talk to people like you and answer your questions. Another thing, I am in my early 50's but I do think that I will purchase it for myself to make sure that I have a financial cushion if something happens to me and I do need home care. If you get home care early enough, you can avoid going to a facility and that is what I am planning on doing when the time comes.

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Like any insurance...it's only good if you need it but you can't not have it. I applied for a LTC policy for my mom when she was in her 70s. She's now 93 and has Alzheimer's dementia. She's had a full time aide living with her since May. The policy pays for that and, mathematically speaking, my mother will have to live through next summer to recoup the cost that went into paying premiums. That being said, her policy is a good one that pays enough per day to cover the cost of either a family caregiver, an outside aide or towards a nursing facility. Having an aide is a better use for mom as she is able to stay in her apartment and we are very lucky that the woman who is living with her is wonderful. That being said, should my mother not live past the summer, the insurance company will really not have paid anything toward her care. I also got a LTC policy when my mom did so the premiums were lower and I have better options because I don't want my daughter having to worry about dealing with me. I really wish our country had better end of life options. So...bottom line, it's all a gamble.

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From my POV, long term care insurance is far from perfect, but a wonderful idea if you can afford the premiums. Whether it's worth it or not it depends on the insurance company, and on your state. There is a type of LTC policy called a Long Term Care Partnership policy, which will pay for assisted living, live-in care, nursing home care, etc., and also (importantly) protect your loved one's assets from having to be "spent down" to qualify for Medicaid when the insurance coverage period runs out. The reason this is important is that people may need to utilize their LTC coverage long before their final years, and the period during which they pay out is always limited. So eventually you may need Medicaid anyway. The availability of good quality Medicaid-covered care also depends on what is available in your area and what their rules and requirements are for accepting Medicaid residents. In my area, most high quality assisted living facilities will not accept Medicaid residents unless they've lived in the building under "private pay" for at least a year (one -- an otherwise excellent facility that catered to couples where one resident needs just basic ADL's and the other needs memory care, which would have been perfect for my parents -- wanted FOUR years of private pay before they would accept Medicaid). Without LTC insurance to pay for those "private pay" years, you would have to go to a facility that accepts Medicaid right away. Depending on your area, they may be few and far between and the quality of care (or the environment, food, activities, memory care, etc.) might not be as good.

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I can only speak for my mom. She paid for it for 20 years and I thought it was a not a good investment, but never said anything. She was in her 70's. Now she is in an Assisted Living that cost 5k a month. She gets paid for the insurance 3600. She would never have been able to be in such a nice place, ( which isn't a palace by any means but it's nice) if she only relied on her SS.

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Fir me this is one of the most fearful and complicated issues facing all of us-all aging populations and especially those with a dementia diagnosis. I have attended several support group meetings where the costs of this insurance has been discussed as well as the skyrocketing costs of independent and assisted living, let alone memory care, which can cost anywhere from $15,000 to $30, 000 per month. Just independent living can be $5,000 for the apartment and meals and this goes up if it becomes assisted living. Every time someone has to "assist", ie, manage your meds, do a well check, help you to the dining room, my friend had an added cost of $75 per assist. She was in a very lovely place, but went thru her money very fast. My biggest regret is not buying long term care insurance when young enough to afford the premiums. Now it is too late. If you can somehow qualify for medicaide and IF it remains as a viable assist as our so-called "entitlements" are gutted, the qualifications are very very strict. You cannot have ANY assets-at least not in CA. No valuable posessions-jewelry, artwork, car, savings-nothing. My advice-see an attorney and become knowledgeable right away. I speak as a wife whose husband has dementia and it is progressing rapidly. I am not in great health at all, but so far I can manage, though not without meant challenges. There are no Veteran's benefits for this because my husband did not serve during the one day required during the dates of conflict. There will be nowhere we can go that is affordable. This is our own fault-no one did this to us, except for the huge market losses we took back in 2008. We lost our home to a short sale, and were recouping when a son became very ill and that took our savings, which were pretty minimal at that. So what I am saying, is that whatever you can afford, do it. Do not count on medicaide!

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Long term care is great, when it pays! Many insurance companies are denying stays in Assisted Living Facilities, even when they had previously been approved, to lower their claim exposure!
Know your contract!!

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