The NSBN Advantage - Spring '01, Page 1


A Quick Guide to Long Term Care	Edited by Barbara Wong, Director of Marketing

Long term care…sounds like it’s for "old people", doesn’t it? The chief misconception about long term care is that it’s only for older individuals. NOT true! Long term care is defined as "the assistance individuals need when they are unable to care for themselves and need help with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs)—bathing, dressing, transferring (Ed. note: getting from place to place), toileting, continence and eating—or they have severe cognitive impairment." The need for long term care can arise at any age as a result of an accident, chronic illness or short term disability…as well as from advancing age.

Who needs long term care?
Well, about 9 million people of all ages who have disabilities so severe that they require personal assistance to carry out their everyday tasks are candidates for long term care.

How much does long term care cost? Who pays?
No surprise—the cost of long term care is high.

Nursing home care, e.g., ranges from $35,000 to $80,000 a year, with the national average currently at $46,000 a year.
Contrary to popular belief, health insurance or government programs do not pay for this! Also, most group medical plans and HMOs don’t cover long term care expenses. (Check your policy to

be sure.) Medicare only pays for short term, skilled nursing home care after hospitalization, and Medicaid requires recipients to spend down their assets to minimum levels to qualify for assistance.

The bottom line is that a significant portion of long term care costs are paid for by individuals and their families. "The result can be catastrophic—statistics show that more than 70% of single individuals and 50% of couples with one partner in a nursing home are impoverished within one year."

What are the chances my family or I might need long term care as we age? Is there a way to protect myself and my family?
Statistics show that nearly one in five Americans has a severe disability. As the population ages, this number is

expected to increase. A new form of insurance called Long Term Care (LTC) insurance has come onto the market in the last decade especially to address these contingencies.

“ I have long term disability insurance… I’m covered for long term care.”
NO, you’re not! Long term disability insurance provides lost income protection in the event you are unable to perform your normal duties at work due to a partial or total disability (as defined in your policy). While you may be unable to work at a job, you may still be able to take care of yourself and handle normal daily activities. Your financial need may only be for a cash amount sufficient to cover your lost income during your period of disability.

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