It is harder and harder to avoid the subject of long term care these days. Virtually everyone has a or relative who is receiving, or has received, long term care. Nearly everyone has a story to recite in regards to the sudden cost of long term care. And, though individuals are reluctant to discuss this matter, many are concerned about their own long term care. Will I require it? Will I have the ability to afford it? Will the cost of care wipe out my financial savings? Who will care for me or my husband?

We’re Getting Older

There’s good reason to be asking these questions.

First, we’re getting older. Individuals aged sixty five and older presently make up about 12.4 % of the population, but primarily based on projections this figure is anticipated to extend to about 19.6 % by 2030. Moreover, whereas only 1.6 percent of the full population is over age eighty five at the moment, this percentage is predicted to more than double by 2030.

The increase within the percentage of seniors is due, in part, to the increasing age of the baby boom generation. It is usually attributable to increases in life expectancy. In 1950 life expectancy was only 68.2 years. By 1975 it had increased to 72.6 years and by 2002 life expectancy for all people had risen to 77.3. For these age sixty five, life expectancy was 18.2 years in 2002 as in comparison with simply 10 years in 1950.

The longer we live, the higher the chance of requiring some type of long term care in our lifetime. In accordance with the United States Department of Labor, the elderly population requiring long term care assistance will greater than double within the next 30 years to greater than 70 million.

Utilization of long term care services is increasing

Second, whereas improvements in healthcare have made sudden death from acute ailments much less probable, the possibilities of incurring a debilitating illness which will require long term care has increased.

Changing cause-of-death tendencies are reflected in modifications in nursing home usage. In 1999 there was an estimated 1.6 million people in nursing home care. Even with the use of alternatives equivalent to home health care and assisted living, more and more of us would require a minimum of some nursing home care before we die.

We’re going into nursing homes at later ages. In 1999, 52 % of nursing home residents have been age eighty five and older as in comparison with only 45 % in 1985.

No doubt, as the baby boom generation continues to age and as aging boomers live a greater period of time, the system could strain to fulfill the needed services. As demand exceeds supply, expenses can solely be expected to increase.

What is Long Term Care?

Though the term long term care encompasses a range of services offered to people suffering from chronic sickness or different disabling situations over an extended time frame, it often contains assistance with:

- fundamental capabilities, akin to bathing, getting dressed, getting out of bed, going to the bathroom, continence and feeding yourself;
- family chores, similar to cleaning and cooking meals;
- life management, corresponding to shopping, money management, and taking medications; and transportation.

The necessity for assistance in one of these areas is commonly diagnosed by assessing one’s ability to perform Activities of Daily Living (ADL). Researchers agree that the lack of ability to carry out some or all the following six core ADLs best describes either bodily or cognitive impairment.

- Bathing–turning on water faucets, setting temperature and water level, transferring into tub or bath, washing the entire body, transferring out of the bathtub or shower, drying off fully, and emptying the bathtub;
- Dressing–getting clothes from the closet and drawers, dressing ones self, together with fasteners, braces, and prostheses;
- Transferring–moving the body from one surface or plane to another, such as from mattress to chair, chair to standing;
- Toileting–transferring self to rest room when the urge to void happens, arranging clothes, transferring to rest room, cleaning self, transferring off toilet, rearranging clothing, washing hands, and shifting out of loo; and
- Eating–getting foods and drinks from a container into the body for nourishment, together with slicing meat, buttering bread, and utilizing fingers and utensils.
- Continence -the flexibility to take care of management of bowel and bladder function; or, when unable to take care of control of bowel or bladder function, the ability to perform associated personal hygiene (including caring for catheter or colostomy bag.)

Three-quarters of present residents required assistance with three or more activities of daily living (ADLs). Most residents acquired assistance with bathing (94| %) and dressing (87 percent), more than half (56 percent) received assistance utilizing the bathroom, and virtually half (47 percent) received assistance with eating.

How much will it cost?

Some of the concerns we share about long term care centers around how much it will cost. The price will depend on the level of care received. Nursing home facilities, licensed by the state and certified by the federal government for Medicare and Medicaid funds, provide the broadest variation of services.

Residential community care services, also called assisted living facilities, adult| family/foster homes, congregate properties, continuing care retirement communities, and board and care homes, are a growing section of the long term care delivery system. Although usually licensed by the state, regulation of such facilities is less stringent than for nursing homes because fewer medical services are provided.

Home-and-community based services are designed to offer the minimal level of care to allow individuals to stay in their very own homes. Examples include senior facilities, adult day care, and “meals on wheels,” transportation, therapy services, and homemaker/chore services.

Nursing home care is by far the most costly with annual nursing home costs around the nation averaging $66,000 in 2003. The prices of forms of care vary significantly dependent on the extent and duration of care.

Paying for Long term Care

Many people mistakenly think that Medicare or Medicaid pays for our long term care needs. There are some vital things you must find out about these programs. Medicare primarily covers expert care after you have been in the hospital for no less than three days and customarily does not cover personal or home care services. Medicare was not designed to pay for extended long term care and it shouldn’t be counted on as an useful resource to satisfy this need.

Medicaid is the federal/state medical health insurance program designed to pay for nursing home care for those who are very poor. Medicaid dictates the type, amount and location of care. When you’ve got belongings to protect, Medicaid is mostly not for you.

Some people believe they’ll depend on their own private resources to pay for their long term care needs. This is referred to as self insurance. Sadly, many people underestimate the price of long term care and find themselves utilizing savings that they have accumulated over a lifetime. Others might need to sell belongings, such as their home.

One other Choice: Insurance for Long Term Care

As a substitute to depleting their belongings, counting on the federal government for assistance, or burdening loved ones, many people are turning to long term care insurance coverage to assist in covering the expense of extended care. This kind of policy covers services such as nursing home, assisted living, home health, and adult day care.

If you happen to believe you are too young to start thinking about long term care insurance, think about that many people who require long term care are working-age adults between the ages of 18 and 64. Plus, the premiums for long term care insurance coverage are a lot less the younger you might be if you purchase the policy.

Learn more about Insurance for Long Term Care