Should You Consider Long-Term Care Insurance?

It is very difficult to predict whether you or a loved one will one day need long-term care insurance. A diagnosis like Alzheimer’s disease or another dementia can drastically change your life and your financial plans. With an estimated five million Americans currently diagnosed with the disease, and a new diagnosis every 66 seconds, Fraser Trebilcock attorney Melisa M. W. Mysliwiec says it’s important to plan ahead.

“We don’t know if we’re going to get Alzheimer’s or anything like that. I think the best thing is to have your team of advisers. 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, is a good time to meet with an attorney, get estate planning documents put in place so there’s someone to act on your behalf if you become unable to,” Melisa said in an interview with WILX News 10’s Ann Emmerich.  Other important advisors to have on your team include a financial planner, accountant, and insurance agent.

These critical estate planning documents include: durable powers of attorney and patient advocate designations. You’ll also want to closely review assets and your financial plans with a financial planner when considering an investment in long-term care insurance. Long-term care insurance isn’t for everyone and a financial planner can assist in making that determination.  This is especially important, Melisa says, because even if you decide to buy long-term care insurance, the plan you choose will affect how much the insurance covers.

“There’s a big difference between getting a hundred dollars for help with care at home, versus paying privately in a nursing home which might be $250 or $270 dollars a day. So you really want to look at how much you can get per day and then there’s usually a cap on how many years it will pay out, too,” she said.

On average, people with Alzheimer’s live ten years with the disease, or longer, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. This means that families are left to pay for additional medical and living expenses for prolonged periods of time. So not only does the disease progressively devastate the health of the patient, it also takes a financial toll on families.

To read more about long-term health insurance, and hear one woman’s personal struggle with paying for her husband’s care after he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, read News 10’s full story here.

It’s important to note that even if you have long-term care insurance, you may ultimately have to rely on Medicaid. Recent rule changes could affect how much you receive from Medicaid without any penalties. Melisa explains why your caretaker agreement should be Medicaid-compliant, even before you decide to apply for Medicaid, in this blog.

If you have more questions about putting together a plan in case you or a loved one are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, attorneys Melisa Mysliwiec and Paula M. Manderfield will be presenting on Alzheimer’s Legal and Financial Planning on Wednesday, March 8 at MSU Federal Credit Union’s East Lansing Branch, from 6-7:30 p.m. Advance registration is requested.