Naming – and Long Term Care Planning
Conventional wisdom says that many people avoid executing a will because doing so is an admission that they are going to die. The same thinking is said to make some people reluctant to purchase life insurance. That may be true. People may put off taking the action, because it’s difficult for them to imagine a world that doesn’t include them! However, I think there’s something else going on. It may be even harder for people to grapple with than writing a will or buying an insurance policy. I’m going to call it ‘the problem with naming.’ Here’s what I mean. A will isn’t just a legal document about the disposition of assets – it requires that the person actually think about and NAME who will get things. A life insurance policy isn’t just a way to create a lump sum of money upon death – in most cases; the person purchasing the policy has to NAME the beneficiary. So, we could say that – behind these sterile legal and financial instruments are living, breathing people. They are NAMED in them, and will benefit from them. I think coming to terms with exactly who we are willing to name – or not willing to name – can be very difficult. In some cases, even more difficult than acknowledging the fact that we are, indeed, mortal. Have you ever completed a health care proxy or a living will? As you know, these legal documents ask you to NAME someone your health care decision maker. They will speak for you if you cannot. Unlike a typical will or a life insurance beneficiary designation, being NAMED someone’s health care proxy doesn’t carry any apparent upside or benefits. Instead, the proxy may be called upon to make health care decisions that could prolong or shorten the person’s life, and impact the quality of their life. It’s serious stuff, which is why people don’t make the decision lightly. All of the documents mentioned above aim to ease the burdens that come from death or a decline in health. By NAMING who will make decisions, and who will inherit assets, people who plan ahead in this way can lessen the burden on those they love. Isn’t it interesting that there is no such corollary document for long term care planning? Imagine that, instead of a health care proxy, we each needed to complete a form called a ‘long term care planning document’? It would ask us to complete how we were planning on paying for care, where we planned to live when we needed care, and, should inadequate funding be in place, to NAME who would be our full-time caregiver. Of course, we would also need to NAME an alternate full-time caregiver should the first one be incapacitated or unwilling to serve. Do you see where I’m going with this? Those people who choose not to do long term care planning by purchasing a long term care insurance policy or other funding instrument DO, in fact, have a long term care plan. Unfunded care plans, upon examination, usually involves unpaid care by a relative. By asking people to articulate their plan, specifically NAMING who they are planning will be their primary caregiver; we may be doing both the non-planner and the now-named relative a big favor. By finally putting words and NAMES to the unfunded plan, the person may look more realistically at the topic in advance of their care need, while they are still able to...
read moreDown to Earth
The kick-off keynote speaker at a recent long term care insurer convention was Captain Mark Kelly. Kelly, a NASA astronaut, is perhaps best known for being the husband of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who is slowly recovering from a gunshot wound to her head. It was inflicted during a ‘meet the constituents’ event at a supermarket in her district, in January 2011. The convention was The Intercompany Long Term Care Insurance Conference, held in late March in Colorado Springs. Kelly spoke frankly of his career, and also frankly of the real challenges a couple faces when one of them needs long term care. While expressing his gratefulness for the professional caregivers who attend to his wife, he expressed frustration regarding their intrusion into the couple’s private life. Little things one wouldn’t normally consider make a big difference. In the morning – he explained – he needs to get ready in a different bathroom than Gabby and her caregiver. He needs to bring his clothes to another room to get dressed for work. Even while expressing gratitude for the care, he described how the life that they had as a couple before the accident was very different than the life they need now. He described how difficult it was for him to make the decision to return not only to work, but to space. Thinking of his wife and family and he wondered whether to return to one of the most dangerous jobs on earth. His wife had always encouraged him in his career, and so he decided that it was important for him to return. When, during audience Q&A, he was asked what he hopes his legacy will be, he thought for a moment, and then replied that he wanted to be remembered as being a good husband. One might wonder how the couple pays for the extensive long term care Giffords receives? Captain Kelly explained that, since Gabby was injured on the job, she receives her long term care through workers’ compensation. One can’t help but wonder how their lives and finances would be different if her injuries had been the result of a stroke (Kelly explained that her left side remains paralyzed), or an accident not tied to work. Most of us do plan for retirement, when we are able to stop working and live off what we have put aside. However, most people stop there, not considering how to fund the possible long term care need that often arrives in our 80s or even 90s…but, like Giffords, disability can rear it’s difficult head at any age, from a variety of causes. If living with a long term care need is difficult for an astronaut and a Congresswoman, with the benefit of funding, imagine how difficult it could be for ourselves or a family member, without benefit of funding. Peace of mind – knowing that we can take care of ourselves and our family – is a hard thing on which to put a price tag. However, for many of us, the price of peace of mind is as low as a long term care insurance premium. After all, we’ve taken care of virtually every other risk, haven’t...
read moreCBS Reports: Is Long-Term Care Insurance Right For Your Family?
“Less than 8 percent of Americans have long-term care insurance policies. What most people don’t know is that their private insurance and even government programs, like Medicare, don’t pick up the tab for long-term care, whether it’s for a chronic condition like dementia, or for someone who can no longer care for themselves.” These two sentences are from a recent article by award-winning journalist, TV anchor and radio host Esme Murphy. Reporting from WCCO-TV (CBS – Minnesota), Murphy’s article, Is Long-Term Care Insurance Right For Your Family?, paints a picture of what many families face when long term care is needed. Why aren’t the newspapers, magazines, and online journalists reporting on this important topic? We all know the media truism “If it bleeds, it leads.” Put another way, bad news trumps good news the vast majority of the time. So, it’s no surprise that if there’s a negative angle about any topic (whether it be weather, celebrities, or long term care insurance), it’s that point of view that’s likely to dominate the media. Another media truism according to the experts is this: visual stories – those that can be accompanied by an interesting photo that will grab readers’ interest – prevail. This preference for color visuals is a problem for the topic of insurance in general; it’s hard to show a photograph of an intangible product. The visual depictions that do come to mind are photos of people who need assistance with activities of daily living or are cognitively impaired. Not the kinds of photos that grab readers or viewers attention and appreciation. The last truism is that today, attention spans are shorter. Complex topics, full of variables and nuance, are rarely covered in mainstream media. Long term care planning and the role of long term care insurance is exactly one of those topics. Consider this fact in conjunction with the truisms above, and it’s a miracle when a reporter gives this topic a try. So, we were heartened to read so much good information in the short piece by Murphy. In the article we meet Kay Anderson, recounting how she is struggling to pay the long term care bills of her now-deceased mother. Bills she was surprised to find were not covered by Medicare. “It hits you like a brick that, first of all, you have come up with $6,000 dollars up front,” she said. Anderson, age 56 and single, says “I am exploring the options of long-term care insurance, because I don’t see any other way for myself to be taken care of,” she said. The best advice offered in the article? Delaying planning for care can be a costly mistake. That advice may not ‘bleed,’ it’s not a compelling visual, and planning does require attention. However, as millions of families whose loved ones did not plan for long term care can attest, long term care planning today might be the smartest move you could make. The article can be found at this link:...
read moreFebruary is for Groundhog Day, and Long Term Care Planning for your Valentine
Every year we hear reporting on the rather quaint – but nonsensical event held each February 2. A groundhog emerges from his burrow in the morning, and if the animal sees his shadow and retreats back to the burrow, winter will last 6 more weeks. Of course, if the weather is cloudy and no shadow is seen, it is said that spring will come early. Huh? As far as quaint traditions go, it’s cute, and no one gets hurt. That is, unless people actually make plans contingent on the groundhog being accurate! Truth be told, many people don’t do long term care planning for reasons that make just about as much sense as a groundhog’s ability to predict the weather. “I’m planning on living a long life. Living to the age of 100 sounds about right for me!” Although most 50-year-olds do not currently need care, let’s think about it. How many 90-year old people do you know who don’t need help? Honestly, don’t you think that planning on living to 100 without considering how to pay for long term care isn’t the best course of action? At the risk of being flip, it makes about as much sense as traveling to the tropics without packing a bathing suit…or relying on a burrow animal to predict the weather. “No one in my family ever needed long term care. I don’t need the insurance.” The elders in your family also didn’t live in a time of current protocols and responses to emergencies such as heart attacks and strokes. Not to mention the modern flu vaccine, which saves countless elderly lives each year. Here’s what I suggest. Give some thought as to how the elders in your family passed away. They may not have ever entered a nursing home, but they may have received weeks or months (or even more) of care in their home. Then, read all the obituaries in your local paper one day. I’ll bet there are a lot of very old people, most of whom needed long term care before they passed. “Long term care insurance is just too expensive. I can’t afford it – so there’s no point in even looking!” Although reporting average premium numbers is almost always a mistake (the quotes we would look at for you will be more or less than the average, which can be frustrating), I can say that most people with whom I meet are surprised to find how affordable a long term care insurance plan can be. Some people have compared the premium to ‘in the ball park’ of their monthly cable bill, but a lot less expensive than the average car payment. The important thing to keep in mind is that there are a variety of design options that allow almost anyone to find a plan that’s affordable – and meaningful. My advice? Don’t run back into your burrow until you’ve gotten a customized long term care insurance...
read moreHunkering Down
The winter months are a time of hunkering down. The clock chimes at 5:30 in the evening, and we realize that it’s already dark. Soon enough, spring will wake up the earth, but right now that seems a foreign reality. When hunkered down, we normally turn inward. It can be difficult to see the big picture, and to imagine a different time with different realities. Where before we saw the big picture, when we’re hunkered down it’s sometimes difficult to see beyond our shoes! This hunkering down is also a reality of long term care. Families talk about an acute long term care need as if it were a different time and place. As though it didn’t happen in the same family, to the same people, living their lives day-to-day. The wagons are circled. One of the saddest aspects of long term care can be when family members hunker down and try to conserve money by not spending it on care services. Experts in the field report when an elderly couple needs care, it’s usually the husband who needs care first. He wants his wife to be taken care of financially after he’s gone, so he strongly encourages her to not spend a cent on his care that could be conserved. And, unless there’s a change of heart or a skilled intervention on the topic, his wife bears most (if not all) of the caregiving on her shoulders, often ruining her own health in the process. Imagine that same scenario, but with an important wrinkle: the husband had planned ahead and had a long term care insurance policy. Now, there’s a pile of money to be spent only on his long term care. Gone is reluctance to buy professional care services. After all, it’s always easier to spend an insurance company’s money than your own money. This is also one of the best traits of long term care insurance: the insurance money spent does not reduce the bank balance of the surviving spouse or the inheritance of the children and grandchildren. The facts are clear. Long term care insurance provides money to help during one of the most difficult experiences an individual or family will go through. It is not money that comes out of retirement income, savings, and inheritance or a trust. It is a pile of money that is available as a result of paying premiums, and is activated or created when the insured needs long term care. It’s not an exaggeration to say long term care insurance provides light to people and families at an otherwise dark...
read moreThe Best New Year’s Eve Resolution – Ever
Just in case you are among the majority of human beings who – even if they temporarily stick to New Year’s resolutions – eventually revert to their old behaviors, let me give you a bit of good news. There are some smart strategies that can help us do smart things that are good for ourselves and those we love. Even when it comes to long term care planning. The Buddy System When it comes to resolutions and behavior modification, enlisting the help of a buddy can be especially helpful. In the example of sticking to an exercise program, making plans to meet a friend at the gym and work out together 3 times a week can boost your resolve and compliance with your goal. Since knowing that someone will hold you accountable makes it much easier to accomplish the behavior, use this concept to your advantage in long term care planning. When you call the agent to request a consult, tell them your timeframe for making a decision, and ask their help in pushing you to keep to your deadline. Better yet, ask a sibling or friend to go through the long term care insurance process with you…they probably haven’t done it yet, either! Reward Yourself If you know that you are the kind of person who procrastinates to avoid unenjoyable activities (such as long term care planning), set yourself a reward for finally crossing it off your to-do list. Imagine how great you’ll feel when your next birthday comes around and you haven’t procrastinated into a higher premium because of inaction! Too Busy to Plan? I sometimes imagine all of us who are so busy now – in 30, 40 or even 50 years. I’m calling this the ‘old me (or you).’ If our health has failed, we will, in a sense, have nothing but time on our hands. No more rushing to work or juggling the needs of children and parents – all that will be in our past. What will the ‘old you’ wish that the ‘young you’ (read – NOW) had done? I’m guessing looking into – and probably purchasing – long term care insurance would be on the ‘old you’ wish list. If Only My Parents Had… Those of us who are faced with a parent(s) in long term care crisis or who has a chronic need for care can’t be faulted for thinking: “I wish my parent(s) had purchased a long term care insurance policy when they were younger and insurable.” As we step up into the role of caregiver, whether hands-on or managing from afar, we might even think: “I’ll never put my kids through what I’ve gone through.” In fact, we can’t help but focus on our parents when it comes to the topic of long term care planning. However, in most cases, their opportunity to plan was in the past. Unless they are still relatively healthy, relatively young (under age 75, generally), with comfortable assets and/or strong cash flow (coverage bought at older ages can be expensive), their long term care insurance horse has already left the barn. Which brings me to you. Start this year off right with a resolution that will finally put to bed one of the most important financial questions you will have for the rest of your life: How will you (yes, you!) pay for long term care should it be needed? Hope you are having a great holiday season, and wishing you a Happy New...
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