How to Break Down Long-Term Care Planning Effectively

Guest post by Nicole Rubin

How to Break Down Long-Term Care Planning Effectively
Having a plan for long-term care is not just smart — for most adults, it is an absolute necessity. Paying for long-term care takes many people by surprise, but it really shouldn’t since most people will require long-term care in their lifetime. So, to make sure you aren’t caught unprepared, MindSpa offers the following guidance.

Be Aware of How Much Insurance Will Help
When you think about insurance, you should know that Medicare is not going to help with long-term care costs. The most you will get is some coverage for direct healthcare expenses, but that’s only a sliver of most long-term care needs. If you decide to plan ahead, you could look into long-term care coverage that can offset costs, or you can look at Medicare Advantage or supplemental plans that can give you more coverage for healthcare, prescriptions, and other related expenses.  

Contribute More to Retirement Investments
Boosting your retirement contributions can also be helpful if you want to start to save for potential long-term care costs. It’s never too soon to draft a retirement plan. But a plan is only as good as your discipline to stick to it. With a reasonable budget and appropriate savings, you can have a practical plan to meet all your needs.

Keep Your Long-Term Factors in Mind
It’s a bit tricky to estimate your need for care. While you can’t predict the future, Genworth suggests looking at factors that can play a role in requiring long-term care. Ask yourself some important questions when thinking about your risks: is there a history of Alzheimer’s in the family? This condition is typically passed down through the maternal side of families, so if a maternal grandparent required care, you may need the same kind of care in the future.

Plan for Assisted Living
Exploring local assisted living and nursing home facilities involves conducting research on various options that align with your needs. This entails examining reviews, evaluating their locations, and learning about the amenities they offer. After gathering this information, you can formulate a plan to visit different communities. Once your research is complete, you can arrange tours of the facilities that seem like potential matches for your requirements.

 Take Steps to Take Care of Your Health
Watch what you eat and maintain a healthy weight, but also commit to a regular fitness plan. DailyCaring points out that exercise is especially critical in maintaining muscle tone and flexibility needed to prevent falls. You can also think about making changes to your home to make it safer for you to age in place. Basic features, such as grab bars in the bathroom and non-slip rugs, can be vital in fall prevention at home.

Assisted Care
You know you’ll probably need some type of care as you get older. It may be as simple as hiring a home health care assistant, or you may need to create a plan to eventually move to assisted living. The big question is, how will you pay for that care? The good news is there are quite a few ways to cover long-term care expenses. If you have a home or property, you can easily sell your house when you are older and have more equity to get the cash you need.

Reverse Mortgages
If you plan to age in place, a reverse mortgage could be a great option as well. With a reverse mortgage, you or your spouse can remain in the home while receiving payments from your chosen lender to help offset any unexpected costs. When the homeowner passes away, the house is sold for profit by the lender. There are a lot of pros and cons to a reverse mortgage, so practice due diligence if you plan to pursue this option.

 Paying for long-term care doesn’t have to put you in a stressful situation. Take proactive steps now, such as planning to sell your home once you have sufficient equity, starting a business to boost your retirement income, and taking better care of your health. Just be sure to plan ahead for your need for care and lay out a solid financial strategy for covering any costs of long-term care. When the time comes, you will be thankful you did!