Where Can You Receive Long Term Care?
Long Term Care Locations
Long Term Care Insurance is highly customize-able and flexible, so when you are considering coverage you can choose the exact benefits important to you and your premium cost budget. You can even choose where to receive long term care; at home, in assisted living facilities, senior centers, and yes, even nursing homes. But the LTC insurance companies lead with nursing homes….and no one wants to be in a nursing home! It is easier, and feels better, to just put off a discussion about Long Term Care Insurance.
So we are being transparent here… we “invert the pyramid” and lead off with where most Americans receive Long Term Care… in their homes. That is what people want, and where they feel safest. And it is possible. The other coverages are there, but we like to lead with home care. But before location, let’s understand the 3 types of long term care:
There Are Three Types of Long Term Care:
Custodial Care
Custodial care is help with performing activities of daily living like eating, dressing, bathing, transferring, toileting and maintaining continence. Not help with medical needs.
Custodial care is covered by Long Term Care Insurance in many locations.
Intermediate Care
Intermediate care is a mix of custodial and skilled care, many times needed in close proximity of time. Example, a hip replacement surgery is needed skilled care. Then custodial care is needed during the rehabilitation time.
Intermediate Care is covered in assisted living facilities.
Skilled Care
Skilled care is help with medical needs, performed by medical professionals like physicians and nurses, along with activities of daily living.
Skilled care is covered by LTC Insurance in medical facilities and skilled nursing centers.
There are Five Main Locations Where You Can Receive Long Term Care
At Home:
At home; your home, or your family member’s home. Where you live now. Where your family is and all your stuff. Where you are comfortable.
Seventy-one percent (71%) of all long term care is provided in one’s home!
Custodial long term care is provided informally by family members (usually a spouse), or more formally by a home health aide, or nurse. The more formal care is provided by a home health agency, and may be overseen by a geriatric care manager that can help provide a blueprint for the best care. Long Term Care Insurance can provide monthly benefits to help pay for all of these types of care.
Community Based Care Centers
Provide long term care for you near your home, usually in conjunction with home care, and Long Term Care Insurance benefits can be used to pay for the cost of these care locations.
-adult day service programs (“adult day care”) provide custodial care for a specified period during the day. They are beneficial to the one receiving care (a change of scenery, seeing friends), and their home caregiver (giving the spouse time to rest and accomplish other tasks).
-senior centers, where seniors can go for community-based recreational and club programming, or to meet with counselors in nutrition, medicine, etc.
Assisted Living Facilities
Provide custodial (but not medical) care in centers of living that are usually designed as apartments or town homes.
As a resident of the assisted living facility you have your own space but also access to non-medical staff who can help with ADLs, taking medication, and supervision. Other services such as meals, housekeeping and laundry are available on-site.
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
A newer innovation, these life care communities to an outside observer may resemble an entire subdivision or small town. Varied homes and care options are available and can change over time. So a resident can begin with fully independent living, taking advantage of recreational and social activities, and occasional help from non-medical staff, then later transition to assisted living or skilled nursing facilities within the same community.
Skilled Nursing Facilities
Also referred to as nursing homes, provides 24 hour care that many times is medical in nature in addition to helping with ADLs.
For most people, care at home is preferred. But to be clear, Long Term Care Insurance benefits can help pay for any of these locations.
What is the Average Cost of Care at These Locations?
(The “Financial Why” You Need Long Term Care Insurance)
The cost of long term care in these differing locations varies, as the services and care available differ. See these average annual costs surveyed and compiled in November 2019 by Genworth Insurance Company:
$19,500.00 annually for adult day service programs
$48,612.00 annually for an assisted living facility
$51,480.00 annually for homemaker services in your home
$52,624.00 annually for care from a home health aide in your home
$90,155.00 annually for a semi-private room in a skilled nursing facility
$102,200.00 annually for a private room in a skilled nursing facility
And Medicare, the Federal program that helps those age 65 and older with medical costs, does not pay for skilled nursing care after 100 days.
What if you needed long term care for many years? Just ten (10) years of skilled nursing care in a private room would cost over $1 million dollars!
Long Term Care Insurance Benefits Help Pay for These Costs and Give You the Power of “Choice.”
Depending on the benefits and options you choose in your Long Term Care Insurance policy, the monthly benefits received if you met the definition of requiring care could be used for all of these different locations where long term care is offered.
When discussing the real value of Long Term Care Insurance with clients we mention the idea of “choices.” Those who need long term care, but without resources or a strong Long Term Care Insurance policy have few. Their choices usually begin with spending down all of their savings to almost nothing. Then relying on Medicaid, a Federal program, to bear the cost of long term care, in a location, and in a way, mandated by Medicaid.
When you have a strong Long Term Care Insurance policy in place, you have many more choices! Can you be cared for at home? If so, you can make that choice, and afford it. At some point do you need intermediate or skilled care? You can make the choice of the location, not Medicaid.
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