| Long-term care insurance, or LTC insurance, is an | | | | of premiums you can or are willing to pay there |
| insurance policy that will provide financing in the | | | | may be a "lifetime limit" on how much the policy |
| event the policy holder needs nursing home care, | | | | will pay out as a grand total. This is why when |
| home-based health care, or adult day care. | | | | you are considering an LTC insurance policy you |
| Typically a policy will cover these needs for | | | | need to read the policy's terms, conditions, and |
| individuals above the age of 65 or who have a | | | | limitations carefully and compare the benefits to |
| chronic condition or a disability requiring constant | | | | determine which policy will best address your |
| supervision. LTC insurance coverage is more | | | | personal circumstances. |
| flexible and provides significantly more options | | | | Most LTC insurance providers do offer policies |
| than the usual public assistance program. | | | | that can also provide some financing for |
| LTC insurance payouts are based around the | | | | "alternative care", such as the need to build a |
| inability of an individual to engage without | | | | wheelchair ramp for one's home. |
| assistance in six basic Activities of Daily Living, or | | | | It's important therefore to realize that LTC |
| ADLs: eating, bathing, dressing, using the | | | | insurance is not the same thing as health |
| bathroom, being ambulatory, and continence. An | | | | insurance. LTC policies only cover very specific |
| individual's ability (or lack of it) to perform ADLs is | | | | circumstances. For instance, if an individual needs |
| important for determining what type of long-term | | | | prescription medications but can perform five or |
| care insurance she'll need. Most of the time, when | | | | all six of the ADLs, LTC insurance is not going to |
| someone can't perform two or more of the | | | | pick up the prescription tab. |
| ADLs, they'll be deemed to need some kind of | | | | Most Long term care insurance policies can't be |
| professional long-term care. | | | | underwritten on people under the age of 40, and |
| The reason that LTC insurance policies began to | | | | likewise most insurers don't offer LTC policies to |
| be developed in the last 20 years is due to two | | | | people who are already 80 or older. As with all |
| factors. First of all, long-term care is usually | | | | insurance, the younger you are when you take |
| extremely expensive. The average cost for one | | | | out the coverage the lower your premiums for a |
| person to stay in a nursing home for one year in | | | | given policy. And, as with all insurance policies, |
| the United States is $80,000. In-home custodial | | | | pre-existing medical conditions won't be covered |
| care can still cost in excess of $10,000 annually. | | | | and if you are already debilitated enough that you |
| Secondly, nearly half of all Americans over the | | | | need LTC you won't be able to get the insurance. |
| age of 65 will sooner or later need LTC, typically | | | | Insurance professionals call the tendency of |
| nursing home care. Although over half of that | | | | people who already have something wrong with |
| number will only stay in the nursing home for less | | | | them to then seek insurance coverage "adverse |
| than a year, nearly 25% will be there for a long | | | | selection", and were they to cover this they |
| time (more than a year).long term care insurance | | | | would all be put out of business. Insurance policies |
| policies are often likened to a "pot of dollars", and | | | | by their definition have to be in place PRIOR TO |
| this pot has its limits. The LTC policy will cover | | | | their being needed, and long-term care insurance |
| only a specific dollar amount for each day the | | | | is no exception. |
| insured individual resides in a nursing facility, or it | | | | Andrew Long writes for a series of websites |
| will finance a certain amount for each custodial | | | | about Care insurance and health related issues. |
| home care visit, and depending on what amount | | | | |