Long Term Care

Mid Atlantic Insurance Group provides expertise, information, and long term care strategies to our clients. Long term care coverage can pay for Skilled Nursing Home and Assisted Care Facilities, Adult Day and Home Care.

Our recommendations are independent and unbiased, we do not represent any one insurance company; rather, we represent you, our client to the insurance industry. We become your Consultant and Advocate.

Our expertise allows us to make available all of the best LTC insurance products and companies, provide strategies and create options, and then shepherd your "best choice" through the application and underwriting process. All of this can be accomplished over the phone, the Internet, and the mail.  No salesman need come to your door.

Years of service have taught us that most people are looking for a skillful advocate to provide unbiased information so that they can make an informed decision on their own schedule, and at their own pace, without the pressure of someone being in their home.  There is no charge for this service.

All communication between us can be achieved through the phone, the Internet, and the mail; no agent need come to your home (unless you would prefer that).  It all begins with a conversation.

What is Long Term Care?

Generally, long-term care is the care people need when they can't perform the tasks of ordinary living independently. It isn't a subject that most of us care to dwell on. However, the failure to discuss or plan for the high cost of long-term care is causing American families to be unprepared to meet the high costs of long-term care and putting then in financial peril.  

Due to advances in our medical technology, our society has been blessed with an increasing average life span. Today, we are living almost twice as long as our ancestors did only 100 years ago. Unfortunately, along with this comes the drawback that the longer we live, the more likely we may need long-term care before we die.  Many times people wrongly assume that because no one in their family needed long-term care, they won't. What people forget is that in the past their family members probably didn't live long enough to require long-term care! As we live longer, our odds for needing long-term care increase.

"What are my odds of needing long-term care?"
It is human nature to think that YOU will never need long-term care. After all, things like that happen to OTHER people, right? That is what most of us would like to believe. Because we don't think it will happen to us, we are often reluctant to plan ahead for future long-term care needs. The reality is that there is a strong possibility that you will need some type of long-term care at some point in your life.

"Who is at risk for needing long-term care? Isn't it just older people?"
While many older people need long-term care, it is important not to overlook that young people can need long-term care too. It is never too early to plan for your future long-term care needs. Some common reasons that young people can need long-term care are: strokes, Parkinson's disease, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and accidents to name just a few.

Over 40% of Americans receiving long-term care are under 65 years old.
While certianly older people are more likely to need long-term care, your need for long-term care can come at any age.  In fact, the U.S. Government Accountability Office estimates that 40% of the 13 million people receiveing long-term care services are between the ages of 18 and 64!

"I can't see myself in a nursing home. I'd rather jump off of a bridge or shoot myself!"
People may have a hard time admitting that they could need long-term care because they associate long-term care with nursing homes. None of us can imagine ourselves being in nursing homes. In fact, we may live our lives promising our parents that we will NEVER put them in a nursing home. A nursing home is the LAST place we would like to receive care.

The good news is that a nursing home is probably the last place you will have to go. Today, there are so many more options that weren't available before. Now it is possible to stay at home or live in an assisted living facility, rather than go to a nursing home. Many people are more realistic about seeing themselves needing long-term care in their home.

82% of long-term care takes place in the home, adult day care centers, and assisted living facilities. 18% of long-term care takes place in nursing homes.
Agency for Health Care Research and Quality Sept. 2000

There are many reasons why people buy long-term care insurance. Do any of these apply to you?

• Preserve your independence
• Guarantee your choice of care and caregivers (allow you to stay at home as long as possible)
• Protect your assets and standard of living
• To avoid being a burden to your family
• To leave more assets to your family, church, alma mater, or other worthy cause
• Peace of mind

Is long-term care insurance appropriate for you?
Possibly, but it really depends on your specific circumstances. A well-designed long-term care insurance policy may be one of the best financial decisions you'll ever make. It can play a very important role in giving you and your family the "peace of mind" that you will have all the necessary resources to pay for quality care - where and when you need it.

To Buy or Not to Buy

You SHOULD consider buying long-term care insurance if...

• You have significant assets and income that you are concerned about protecting.
• You don't have significant assets and income, but you don't want to rely on Medicaid.
• You want to remain financially independent and not have to rely on family or friends for care.
• You wish to guarantee you and your spouse will receive quality care, in the setting of your choice.

You should NOT consider buying long-term care insurance if...

• You currently receive or may soon receive Medicaid benefits.
• You have limited assets and can't afford the premiums for the life of the policy.

Because today's long-term care insurance policies offer a variety of features and benefits, it pays to take your time when choosing your policy. In this section we will help you take a look at what makes up a good policy and the benefit options available to you.

You should consider the following items before considering the details of a long-term care insurance policy.

• The benefits you receive in the future should be substantially more than the premiums you will pay in your lifetime.
• It should not be a "cookie-cutter" or generic one-size-fits-all plan. The policy should be customized to your specific personal and financial needs.
• The premiums should be affordable. Not only now, but in the future as well.

Common Misconceptions

"I don't need long-term care insurance because my children have promised that they will take care of me!" Your children may or may not be willing to take care of you. Regardless, it probably would be unheard of for your children to actually tell you that they would NOT take care of you. In fact, most well-meaning children promise their parents they will NEVER put them in a nursing home. Unfortunately, there is a lot of guilt that children must deal with after making this promise. Let's look at the reality of this promise.  Some other questions to consider are: Can your children quit or adjust their jobs to take care of you? What about taking care of their families? What if your children are too old, to care for you, when you need care? Do your children realistically, have the skills, the patience and resources to care for you? "I have a disability income insurance policy so I don't need long-term care insurance." Disability income insurance replaces a portion of your INCOME if you are disabled. It doesn't also provide you with extra funds to pay for the additional cost of long-term care. A long-term care insurance policy can be, however, an excellent compliment to a disability income insurance policy. "All of my assets are protected from being spent on long-term care because they are in a living trust!" A living trust only avoids the lengthy probate period in your state. Assets that are held in a living trust are counted as assets when determining Medicaid (Medi-Cal in CA) eligibility. With a living trust, because you have access to the assets, your state would require that you spend down those assets first, before qualifying for Medicaid. Here are Four Options To Pay For Your Long-Term Care You can rely on others (spouse, children, etc) to provide the help needed. This option is only available to those with a support system in place and if the amount and type of care required is possible for them to provide. You can self-insure and pay for long-term care with your own income. You can spend down all of your assets and then qualify for Medicaid. You can transfer a predetermined amount of risk of long-term care to an insurance company by purchasing long-term care insurance.

For more information regrading long-term care insurance or to get a quote, please take a moment and call toll free (888) 815-1129 or fill out our online long term care quote form.