Decide Your Long Term Care Fate, Don't Put The Decision In Others' Hands

A large majority of the American public still believes that the government will provide long-term care when needed. It is this misconception that most likely prevents people from planning care for themselves. In fact a recent study revealed that many people believe they can give away assets prior to the need for care and qualify for Medicaid. The study supports the premise that this knowledge prevents people from considering buying long-term care insurance as a way to fund the cost of future care. Indeed it may be possible to use the system and allow Medicaid to cover care but at what cost? Why would anyone want to plan to spend his remaining years in a nursing home? Which is the preferred living arrangement of Medicaid. And why go through the expense and effort of trying to manipulate the system to get welfare care, when a little preplanning at an earlier age would be a better option? nnIn our practice we hear frequent objection to long-term care planning from people who think Medicare or the Veterans Administration will take care of them. These people simply don't understand the limitations of Medicare or the VA systems. Below are quotes taken from individuals who have these misconceptions:nn"Uncle Jim got along just fine with the government paying his care" nn"I can give away my assets and have the government pay for it" nn"We have a trust and all of our assets will go to our family so the government will pay for our care" nn"I'm not interested in home care or assisted living, just stick me in a nursing home and Medicaid will pay the bill" nn"Long term care insurance is too expensive" nnThe National Aging Network, a government-sponsored program, is in the best position to help people receive long-term care in their homes. But unfortunately, for every dollar that supports a person through the aging network the government spends about $270 supporting a person in a nursing home. Because it has inadequate funding, the aging network must confine its valuable services to people who have little income or for social reasons are disadvantaged. Moderate and middle income Americans can receive some services from the network but are mostly excluded or must pay their fair share of the cost. nnWe believe the lack of knowledge with Government long-term care programs is an impediment to proper long-term care planning. When people understand the limitations of relying on government programs they are most likely to be more motivated to plan for the future by making provisions in advance and providing advance funding to pay for care. Prior planning allows people to have a choice in their care setting and in the type of services they receive.nn There are choices for long term care, besides relying on the government:nnOut of the 11 areas of advice or services below, we believe the average American is probably not conversant in any of them. These are the specialists, advisers or services that can make the difference in allowing someone needing care or his or her family to have a choice in care options. Without help, family may not always choose the best option. Much of this advice and many of these services will also help improve the condition or the environment of someone needing long-term care. We believe strongly that families that are prepared for care in advance are going to be significantly more successful than families that use a last-minute "do-it-yourself" approach. We can assure you that using a professional will save considerably more money than the actual cost of the service. nn1.Personal Care Manager Services n2.Professional Home Care Services n3.Medical Care Services for the Aged n4.Legal Services n5.Dial 211n6.Elder Mediation Servicesn7.Financial Services n8.End-of-Life Services n9.eHealth Services n10.Assistive Technology and Monitoring and Prevention Services n11.Government and Community Aging Servicesnn As in any area of consumer spending, knowing what to look for and what strategies to use in arranging for paid care services can often result in saving money. Some strategies allow for preserving the home or relieving the pressure of spending retirement savings. Oftentimes a strategy will provide tax advantages as well. nnA person facing the prospect of long-term care with moderate income and moderate savings may eventually have to rely on Medicaid to pay part or all of the cost of care. For instance someone making $2,000 a month would not be able to afford a nursing home at $4,000 a month. Savings would be depleted quickly and the income from a spouse may be needed as well. Medicaid may become the only option. Medicaid has provisions to protect a healthy spouse at home financially. But many states rob a healthy spouse of a previously adequate income by allowing too little in protected resources and income. Likewise, children, relatives and friends are not recognized for the financial sacrifices they make in providing the early care before a recipient becomes bad enough to need Medicaid funded professional help. nnMedicaid planning, using a professional Medicaid planning advisor or qualified elder law attorney, allows families to correct inequities in the system. Medicaid planning has gotten a bad name because some individuals, who would normally have too many assets to ever qualify for Medicaid, deliberately use it, many years in advance, to give away everything to their family so as to qualify for Medicaid. It is wrong to abuse the system in this way and to use taxpayer dollars to insure an inheritance for the family. And if that person is not anticipating immediate care, this strategy is just plain dumb. nnSome Medicaid planners will attempt to discredit other forms of funding long-term care such as using insurance or a reverse mortgage. They do this in order to discourage the public from using these other strategies. The intent is to limit competition ensuring that paying clients will rely entirely on Medicaid planning as a solution. On the other hand, many long term care funding specialists will use the same strategy against Medicaid planners to eliminate competition from their services. These people make Medicaid planners appear as evil or dishonest. Medicaid planning is no different from tax planning. In fact a Supreme Court decision condones honest methods of eliminating income taxes or estate taxes. Tax planning and Medicaid planning both put an additional burden on taxpayers, but one is considered ethical and the other is often frowned upon. nnWe believe that all strategies have their place in the scheme of things. Medicaid planning fits certain circumstances usually where families are in a crisis mode trying to preserve a few assets such as a house or a savings plan. There is no attempt to take advantage of the taxpayers. Using other strategies for paying the cost of care is a much better approach for a younger generation wanting a plan that will allow for home care, assisted living and choice in care services.n