Things You Should Know about Long-Term Care Insurance

The American population is aging, which means that more of us will require long-term care to take care of ourselves and our families. The figures say that by 2050, the number of Americans aged 65 or more will have reached 80 million! While that reality is imminent, many of us still don’t realize what long-term care entails and when to get it.

We have put together this informative article to tell you exactly that!

Long-Term Care Insurance – What It Is

You will be in need of Long-Term Care Insurance in one of the two following scenarios:

1. You or a loved one is living in a nursing home and the insurance covers the cost of their living
2. You or a loved one requires in-home assistance even though you don’t have a medical ailment. It could be required to handle day to day activities, such as eating, bathing, drinking, dressing or walking.

Long-Term Care Insurance – When It Kicks In

The long-term care insurance policy will kick in once the policyholder is unable to perform two or more of day-to-day activities.

Long-Term Care Insurance – What It Pays

The most important thing to keep in mind about long-term care insurance is that usually, the policies won’t be covering all of the expenses that a policyholder incurs. Mostly, the policyholder will receive a pre-set amount every day until they run out of policy benefits. Therefore, try to be as informed about it as you can before depending on your policy.

For instance, three year’s worth of care costs $165,000. So, if someone who requires full-time care spends $200 a day, they will be able to do so until they have received care worth $165,000. Even so, there are policies with richer benefits. Of course, you may have to pay higher premiums to reap those benefits.

Long-Term Care Insurance – When to Buy It

While there may not be a specific age at which you should purchase long-term care insurance, it is best to buy it as soon as you can afford it. Since the state of finances is different for different people along with having different priorities, individual purchases will be different as well.

The most important factor that should influence your decision about purchasing long-term care insurance is your age. The cost of long-term care insurance will increase as you get older. For example, you will be paying a higher premium if you purchase a policy at age 55 as compared to what you’d have paid if you had bought it at 50. Moreover, you will be paying that premium every year. So it would be a good idea to start early.

Also, keep in mind that you become eligible as an applicant for long-term care insurance by the time you turn eighteen up to seventy-nine – laws might be different for different states. It is best to purchase this type of insurance as early as you can.