Wellness

[cater]

I am one of the ones who have Penn Treaty long term and I am wondering how this is going to work out.  I pay $1000 a year for it.

[chrystaltree]

It's a choice, I suppose.  We opted not to $$ premium money for years and years for limited coverage that we'll probably never need.  Statistically, the vast majority of people never need LTC coverage.  We're in good health, we live a healthy lifey style and as far back as we can remember, on both sides of our family, no one has ever gone into a nursing home.  They all passed after a brief illness in their 80's.  So we're banking on genetics and gambling that neither of has an accident that leads to LTC.  Several of our older friends have expressed regrets that they paid for it when they didn't read the fine print and then found out how limited the beneftis are.  There are always dollar limits and co-pays and approved length of  stays.  I've never heard of any insurance that says here's $300, 000...spend it as you need it.  I suppose it's possible but I'm sure there limitations to that.  Having said that, when we sold our home, we paid cash for our condo which was about half what we got from the sale.  After taxes, we put the remainder in long term CD's. That's our "dire emergency" fund as hubby calls it. 

[cater]

I have been paying Penn Treaty the exact same amount since I took it out 14 years ago.

[noodleann]

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@Abrowneyegirl wrote:

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@software wrote:

You can protect your assets in case you need Medicaid.   But you have to do it NOW, not when you  need it.

Insurance is a gamble.   It may not cover everything, or you may not need it at all.   There are many variables to consider when planning for old age.    And no matter how well we plan, we never know the outcome ahead of time.

Medicare only pays for short term nursing home rehab after a hospital in-patient stay

@LilacTree

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@software

What do you mean by protect your assests?  Do you mean Medicaid/Medicare fraud?  Why is it our job (the taxpayer) to pay your way?

Our savings and assests are meant to take care of us in our old age (or any age).  Do you plan on taking it with you?

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Putting a house in trust for the children doesn't constitute fraud, especially if it's done long before the parents reach the point of going into a nursing home. There are rules regarding time frames for asset transfer to protect against avoidance of paying for care. Without those protections, all assets are fair game, from everything I've read.

Perhaps no one here recalls that one of the key provisions of the Affordable Care Act was its long-term care insurance scheme, which was created to deal with the problem of paying for care in old age. You may not have heard of it because Sebelius jettisoned it as unworkable (read: unaffordable) shortly after enactment. I didn't understand how that was possible then, and still don't, but it happened.

[chrystaltree]

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@cater wrote:

I have been paying Penn Treaty the exact same amount since I took it out 14 years ago.

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       Well, that's how it works.   You take it out at 40 or 45 and pay for 30 years and maybe you need the coverage, maybe you won't.  But you have the coverage.  They don't increase your premiums which aren't terribly expensive because you took it out when you were young and  the risk to the insurer is very, very low for the insurer. It's an entirely different thing if you want the coverage at 50 o 55, assuming anyone will even give it to you.

[noodleann]

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@chrystaltree wrote:

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@cater wrote:

I have been paying Penn Treaty the exact same amount since I took it out 14 years ago.

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       Well, that's how it works.   You take it out at 40 or 45 and pay for 30 years and maybe you need the coverage, maybe you won't.  But you have the coverage.  They don't increase your premiums which aren't terribly expensive because you took it out when you were young and  the risk to the insurer is very, very low for the insurer. It's an entirely different thing if you want the coverage at 50 o 55, assuming anyone will even give it to you.

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The NYT article states that LTC is defined as health insurance. The article also refers to rate increases, which usually have to be approved by the state--so premiums can and do rise.  The point of the article is that you may not have the coverage you thought you had, because some of these firms are going under. From what the article suggests, more companies will follow into insolvency, especially with the baby boomer cohort starting to hit redemption age.

We need another solution. We also need to do a lot more to promote healthful lifestyles. Medicine and science need to find out how to prevent and cure all forms of dementia, which is a major drain on care resources.

[KarenQVC]

@LilacTree  You may wish to check out adult foster care homes.  They tend to cost less than the fancy assisted livings.

[tansy]

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@KarenQVC wrote:

@LilacTree  You may wish to check out adult foster care homes.  They tend to cost less than the fancy assisted livings.

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@I was thinking of suggesting that, too, @LilacTree.  Usually a private home is outfitted to care for up to six adults.  

[software]

If you own a home, you can't go on Medicaid.   If you want to pass your home to your children, do it now.  No I won't take it with me.   

If you require skilled nursing care, you do have to use up all your assets before you go on Medicaid.   The state, which administers Medicaid,  allows you to protect your home from having to sell it to pay for your care.  If you don't like those rules, take it up with the state. 

It's legal to protect your home from the state getting it to pay for your care.

@Abrowneyegirl

[ccassaday]

From what I understand the state can not take your home if your spouse is still living in it.