Healthcare speaker Elaine K. Sanchez, http://EKSanchez.com, discusses what you need to know about Medicare, Medicaid and paying for long-term care in this mini-excerpt from her half-day Boomer Boot Camp Workshop - Getting Prepared to Care for Elders.
Elaine points out the difference between Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare was never intended to pay for long-term nursing care. The benefits are short term and very limited. Medicaid pays for long-term care for individuals who have very little income and very few assets. So if you are extremely wealthy, you can probably self-insure and pay for your own long-term care. If you are at the other end of the spectrum and have very limited resources, you might qualify for Medicaid.
If you or your parents fall somewhere in the middle, and if you have assets you would like to pass on to your spouse and children, then it is critically important to make plans. Costs for long-term care range from $3,000 a month for assisted living up to $12,000 (or more) for advanced dementia care. An elder law attorney can help a couple make plans that will pay for long-term care for one partner without leaving the spouse impoverished. It is important to get legal advice, as there are a stringent laws about giving away or spending down assets. An independent long-term care insurance representative can also help you find a long-term care insurance policy that will make paying for long-term care manageable.
Your age at the time of purchase affects the monthly premium, the younger you are the less expensive the policy, but if you are in good health your age will not disqualify you from coverage. However, if you have diabetes, cancer, alzheimer's, or heart disease, you probably won't qualify for insurance regardless of your age.
Working with an elder law attorney or an estate planning attorney will cost a little money, and long-term care insurance isn't cheap, but the money you invest in these things can keep your family intact emotionally and financially. Avoiding court battles over life support, tube-feeding, and being able to pay for quality healthcare, is well worth the investment of time, energy, and money.
To purchase a downloadable pdf of her 32-page Boomer Boot Camp Workbook visit her website at http://EKSanchez.com. To book Elaine to speak to your organization, contact Jo at
www://speakersonhealthcare.com or call 503-345-9164
Elaine developed the Boomer Boot Camp program after caring for her own aging parents from a distance and then taking over the care of an 80 year-old aunt following an accident. She walks you through the process of gathering and organizing the critical personal, medical, legal, and financial documents; figuring out how to access resources to keep family elders in their homes; how to assess your aging parent's safety, what you need to know before you put a loved one into a long-term care facility, what Medicare and Medicaid will and will not cover, and how you can keep peace in the family and avoid court battles over life support issues and the final distribution of possessions.
For more free articles, videos and information on caring for family elders, visit Elaine's website at http://EKSanchez.com
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Discussion on Medicare and Medicaid turns heated at Pennswood Villageby calkinsmediavideo324 views
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