New York - People who need long-term health care, for themselves or for an aging or severely disabled relative, often find themselves facing painful choices with little information about finances and little time to make a decision. The following is brief outline of options for long term care patients: Medicare - is the Federal health care program for the elderly and severely disabled and pays for specific procedures deemed medically necessary.
- At home - skilled nursing care deemed necessary by a doctor and provided by medical professionals. medicare doe not pay for services like help in dressing, eating or bathing.
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- In hospital - care for acute illnesses, hospitals do not generally provide long-term care.
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- After the hospital - skilled short-term nursing care in a center providing rehabilitation and other kinds of intensive therapy.
- In a hospice - care for those with six months or less to live
Medicaid - long-term care is generally covered by Medicaid but is limited to people with low incomes and assets of no more than about $2,000 (not including house and car). People with more money often enter nursing homes and reduce their assets so they can qualify. Private Insurance- Long term care policies are available but can cost thousands of dollars a year for those over age 65. For that reason, private insurance pays less than 1% of the cost of nursing home care in the United States. You can contact the Assisted Living Federation of America at (703) 691-8100 which has a list of 50 questions to ask providers of care. The American Association of Retired Persons offers a number of publication on long-term care at (202) 434-6030.
If you are a long-term care patient, an independent Fee-Only financial adviser can help you work through the financial alternatives available to you.
Want to protect your assets if you need long-term care? Look no further than our network of FEE-ONLY financial advisers! We can help you with personalized guidance to ensure you make the best decisions for you and your future. You can us ask us any question or obtain a free consultation at TheAdviser.com. Alternatively, visit 1800ADVISER.COM to browse biographies of individual FEE-ONLY advisers and choose one or more to connect with.
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