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Do I Really Need It?
Here is what is happening: The Deficit
Reduction Act of 2006 has had a huge impact on people trying to get rid of their assets in order to have the government (in
the form of Medicaid) pay for their care. Now, if you have over $2000 total, you must give the excess away 5 years BEFORE
you have a health event that can qualify you for LTCi. So how can you plan for that? Maybe you will NEED that
money to live on for the next 20 years and NOT for LTCi.
The government has a huge burden as the Baby Boomers age
and it is closing every gap for Medicaid qualification. Medicaid was never meant for anyone but the very destitute.
That is why, if you have assets to protect for a spouse or to pass on to your family, LTCi is a good way to protect them.
Talk to your attorney, CPA or financial planner. They may advise you to obtain LTCi.There are two factors only that
determine what you will pay for LTCi : your current age and health. That's it.
You want to buy this product if
you can afford it and as soon as possible. The younger and healthier you are, the cheaper the premium.
If you are lucky you won’t but statistics tell us that 65% of us will need it at some point in our lives. Compare
that to your home insurance where the likelihood of your home being destroyed is 1200:1 and yet few of us want to take the
risk of losing our homes in a catastrophic event.
When we really sit down to think about it, a health event or
accident can be even more devastating because the cost is open-ended. Often we don’t know when long term care will stop
being needed. It could be a few months to many years.
Would you feel comfortable writing a check for $6,000 this
month if you or your spouse needed care? Would you feel comfortable writing a check for $6,000 a month for 6 months? What
about one year? Two years? At two years you will have spent $144,000. Long Term Care Insurance transfers that risk to the
insurance company. You are simply buying a pool of money to draw from when you need it. If you choose inflation protection,
that pool will grow over time.
Won't Medicare Pay For This?
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The following criteria must be met in order for Medicare to pay for any of your long-term
care bills. -You must have a hospital stay of three consecutive days (not counting the
day of discharge). -You must be admitted to a nursing facility for the same illness you
were hospitalized for within 30 days of discharge. -Medicare covers only skilled care or rehabilitative
care given in a certified skilled nursing facility or in your home. Custodial Care is not covered when that is the
only kind of care you need. You must be certified by a medical professional that you
need skilled nursing or rehabilitative services daily.
How Much Will Medicare Pay for a Nursing Facility
in 2011?
• Days 1-20: Medicare pays 100%, provided that you are receiving daily skilled care.
• Days 21-100: You pay the first $141.50 per day, and Medicare will pay the balance.
• Days
101+: Medicare pays nothing. You pay the full cost of care. In Oregon, this runs about $7,000 a month (2010.)
Medicare was never designed to pay for extended care, only acute care - the kind that gets you back home
or into society
as quickly as possible.
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