Long-Term Care Insurance

Usually less expensive the earlier you begin coverage

When I discussed Medicare a couple of weeks ago, you may have noticed that I didn’t cover long-term care. In general, people who require long-term care are not sick in the traditional sense; instead, they are unable to perform the basic activities of daily living (ADLs), such as bathing, dressing, eating, toileting, getting in and out bed, eating, and walking.

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Adult Day Care Is a Caregiver’s Best Friend

Please support your local center

For years, adult day services—the term used to describe both adult day care and adult day health care—have been labeled “the best-kept secret.” I have never understood why. Adult day centers are wonderful places for old, frail, and disabled adults to spend a day. People who work at day centers are truly remarkable. They are well educated, usually have special degrees or certifications, and understand how to work with difficult behaviors common to, for example, dementia. Read More >>

The Three Plagues of Long-term Care: Loneliness, Helplessness, and Boredom

“Because three hots and a cot” is just not good enough

I want to throw my purse at long-term care facility administrators who say, because of financial restraints, that they cannot intentionally and successfully address what Dr. Bill Thomas calls the “three plagues” of long-term care: loneliness, helplessness, and boredom. Their thinking goes, if facilities would only take in more money, there would be enough resources to deal with those problems. Claptrap. It’s not about money—it’s about culture and priorities. Read More >>

Long-term Care Insurance: What to Buy

A little homework will pay off

In some cases, the decision about whether or not to purchase long-term care insurance is easy to make. If your assets are below $250,000, or your current cash flow could not sustain the monthly premiums, consider forgoing coverage. If your assets are above $1.5 million, you might consider self-insuring. Read More >>

Whatever You Do, Don’t Do It Alone

Caregivers must reach out to each other

A shout out to those who shared their caregiving experiences related to residents’ boredom in long-term care. A few weeks ago, I wrote about my concern for my mother. She receives excellent care but seems quite bored. Not sure what to do, I asked readers to send in their take on the subject and a few suggestions for how they have dealt with the issue. Read More >>

Long-term Care Insurance: Before You Decide to Buy

Understand the pros and cons

Buyers’ biggest motivation for purchasing coverage is to ensure that their estate won’t be depleted for their heirs. If your primary aim is to pass on an inheritance, then buy coverage. If this isn’t one of your estate-planning goals, consider saving your premium money and forgo coverage. Read More >>

Long-term Care Insurance: What Are Your Odds of Needing It?

And remember that unpaid care always involves other costs

The following statistics are from materials prepared by the federal Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: For folks turning 65 in 2005, 79% of women will need long-term care, while 58% of men will need it.  Read More >>

Long-term Care Insurance: Some Initial Thoughts

Let’s start with some assertions that may not be obvious

This month’s blog postings are about long-term care insurance. Do you need it? How much will it cost? What are some options for financing it? Read More >>

What If Your Mother Doesn’t Think You’re Good Enough?

Three principles to see you through

Mostly, I write about being a daughter of a frail, dependent mother because that’s my life experience. My mother and I have been close for years, enjoying each other’s company and mutual respect. Now that she is 91 and lives with dementia, our relationship has changed, but the foundation we laid is seeing us through.

My sister-in-law, Becky, recently posed a question from a different perspective. What’s a daughter to do if she is not good enough in the mother’s eyes? What if the relationship is not so great between them? Read More >>

Ageism in Long-term Care

Why immigration is good for old people

To prepare for a panel discussion at the June AARP Conference in Chicago, I am reading about ageism. The more I read about it, and the more I observe the caregivers at my mother's assisted living facility, Gaffney House, the more convinced I am that immigration is good for old people. Here is why.  Read More >>