The Long Term Care Crisis in America

By Rosemarie Hurley, Certified Senior Advisor –

The Baby-Boomer generation……. 77,000,000 people are living even longer than their parents who for many, are still living.  Families live further apart than before due to job constraints and the housing markets.  Preparing to keep our older generation safe is more important than ever.

The latest published out of pocket costs for Long-Term Care for 2010-2011 have been released:

• Skilled Nursing Facility Care: $83,585 annually
• Assisted living Facility Care: $39,516 annually
• Alzheimer’s/Memory Care Units: $85,045 annually
• Home Health Care: $43,065 ++ annually

The current economic troubles could not have come as a worse time for seniors.  Many individuals who chose the “self-funding” approach to Long-Term Care future needs now realize that it is financially challenging.  With a depressed real estate market, and historically low CD and money market rates, the ability to self-insure has come under extreme pressure.

If parents are in relatively good health, the time to consider Long-Term Care insurance is NOW.  If it is unaffordable for your parents, family members are realizing that the premiums are far more affordable than the actual costs.  Many families have come to me to work out an arrangement where the premiums are split between the children.  This is a very doable solution.

There are many ways to accomplish this.  There are plans that refund all premiums back to the beneficiaries if a person dies without using the LTC plan.  There are shared plans – one policy to be shared by two people which helps with affordability.  There are even plans for people who still own Life Insurance, who can “exchange” it for Long-Term Care benefits.  The creative plans now available help to rectify the situation for those who failed to plan.

And for the children, the Baby Boomers themselves, the time to create your own planning strategies is here.  You will pay your premiums longer ( hopefully), however the premiums for you compared to those you might pay for parents, is drastically less.  Begin the process while you are healthy to take advantage of the best possible rates.

Planning ahead is smart and necessary to secure a happy, relaxed retirement.  Shift the risk away from you and onto the insurance company.  It makes good sense.

For a free consultation about the various ways to accomplish this financial protection, please send me an email, visit my web site, or pick up the phone and call me.

Rosemarie Hurley, President of Senior Insurance Solutions has been a Long-Term Care Insurance Specialist for over 18 years and brokers with only the finest insurance companies in the industry and is contracted  with EVERY company offering a product.

She is a Certified Senior Advisor and Past President of the local chapter of the National Association of Health Underwriters. She is a member of the Bonita and the Estero Chambers, and a Past President of the Rotary Club of Estero.  She can be reached at 274-6678 or at her web site: www.longtermcareinsurance-online.com.