Why Long-Term Care Funding is a Critically Important Investment for Your Future
November was long-term care awareness month. Regardless which month it is, at InSight Law, we encourage all of our clients to have some type of long-term care plan in place, since you never know if and when you may need an in-home nurse or will need to reside in a long-term care facility.
There are several different strategies that you can employ to address your long-term care funding needs. Strategies I have seen are: buying a straight long term care policy to fully fund your daily needs, buying a straight long-term care policy to partially fund your daily needs and then self-funding the remaining balance, life insurance policies that have long term care riders or access to cash value, and annuities. Which one is right for you depends on your specific situation (goals, budget, family background, etc.)
As a lawyer, I see that my clients are faced with this issue when working through their estate plans. Specifically, the scenario they contemplate is if they have a mental disability – where and how do they want to be cared for and where is the money coming from? This is where having a long term care strategy reviewed by the client, financial advisor and attorney can really pay off for you and your family.
Whether an insurance policy or annuity works for you is an individual decision. There are positives and negatives for both. Regardless, the key is to have some type of funding in place to cover long-term care expenses which may wind up totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Your individual financial situation will determine the best option and we strongly encourage you to sit down with your estate planning attorney and financial advisor to discuss this important issue. Having your finances in order and a plan in place will save you, and your loved ones, from spending a tremendous amount of time worrying about how to pay for quality long-term care.
To learn more about the benefit of long-term care planning, check out this article.