Long Term Care Insurance Benefits Seniors Who Want to Remain Independent at Home
Many individuals may feel uncomfortable relying on their children or family members for support and find that long-term care insurance could help cover. Without long-term care insurance, the cost of providing these services may quickly deplete the savings of the individual and/or their family.
Long term care insurance covers care generally NOT covered by health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid. Many families expect Medicare will cover costs for home care, when in fact; the Medicare program does NOT pay for ongoing long term care.
Individuals who require long term care are generally not sick in the traditional sense, but instead are unable to perform the basic activities of daily living (ADL’S) such as dressing, bathing, eating, toileting/continence, transferring or walking due to a chronic illness such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s.
When a loved one needs assistance at home to continue to live independently, long term care insurance can be a big help in making that care more affordable. Some families don’t even know if their loved ones have a policy or not, so the first place to start is to try and find any records of policies or premium payments. If you know your loved one has long term care insurance and is struggling with activities of daily living, encourage them to utilize their policy benefits as there is no refund of premium to the family if benefits are not utilized.
To learn more about how and when your coverage begins another resource can be found at Long Term Care.gov provided by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Call us at Aging Assistant for more information about Long Term Care Insurance.
