Long-Term Care
As life spans continue to increase, so does the cost of at-home care and assisted living. Long-term care insurance is an important option to consider purchasing as it provides financial security to you and your loved ones if you need long term care. Note: Like Medicare, you would need to purchase your own long-term care policy. FMP does not offer long-term care benefits to new enrollees. A select group of participants who were actively enrolled in the plan prior to July 1, 2013, may have elected to continue coverage with Prudential Long-Term Care Solid Solutions.
What Is Long-Term Care?
Long-term care refers to not only nursing homes or end-of-life care. You can use long-term care for costs associated with:
- Nursing homes
- Assisted living facilities
- Specialty care facilities
- Eating
- Getting dressed
- Walking and getting around
- Hospice/end-of-life care
- And more
Why Should I Consider Long-Term Care Insurance?
Experts tend to agree that long-term care insurance policies start to become good investments at age 50. While Medicare will cover certain hospital, doctor and prescription drug costs, the program does not cover the cost of non-medical care in the home or the full cost of a nursing home, so it’s important to think about your current health situation and whether a long-term care policy will help protect your family’s finances.
Ask Yourself…
- What is my current health status? Will I potentially need long-term care?
- How could caregiving needs impact my loved ones? (e.g., work/career time constraints, high levels of stress, financial concerns)
- If I need long-term care, where would I like to be (e.g., at home, at a facility) and how will I cover the costs?
Key Features
When searching for a long-term care insurance policy, there are some key components you should keep an eye out for:
- Minimum coverage levels
- Policies that protect against inflation
- Option for home care that include payments to family caretakers
- Covers the cost of nursing homes and assisted living facilities
Long-term care policies tend to be complicated, so it’s a good idea to have someone knowledgeable walk you through the options before you head out in the marketplace on your own.
Did you know?
Someone turning 65 today has almost a 70% chance of needing some type of long-term care services during retirement. Almost one-third of today’s 65-year-olds may never need long-term care support, but 20% will need it for longer than 5 years.
Paying for Health Care Quiz
Know your way forward. As you plan for retirement, you need to know your health care coverage options and how you can start saving now to meet this important retirement need. Test your knowledge with this quick, confidential quiz.
Did you know?
The median cost of a private room in a nursing home facility is close to $84,000 per year.