Planning Ahead for Long-Term Care

Most of us spend plenty of time planning for retirement, but there is another question that can be just as important: What happens if you eventually need help caring for yourself?

As we age, everyday tasks that once felt effortless can become more difficult. Sometimes that means needing a little extra help at home. In other cases, it can mean assisted living, memory care or more extensive long-term support. While few people like to imagine needing that kind of care, planning ahead can make a difficult situation much easier to navigate.

For Taylor Collins of Professional Benefits, one of the biggest misconceptions about long-term care is that family will simply step in when the time comes.

“So many of us believe that our children will take care of us when we’re older,” Taylor explains. “But the statistics show that the majority of parental caretakers are daughters, and those daughters are often overburdened with their own children, households and full-time jobs.”

The reality is that caregiving can place significant demands on families. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than half of adults turning 65 today are expected to develop a disability serious enough to require long-term care. For many families, having a plan in place before that need arises can help reduce both the emotional and financial strain.

That is why Taylor encourages clients to start thinking about long-term care well before they expect to need it.

“I like to start talking about long-term care policies with my clients at 45 or 50, with the hope that by 55 they’ll have committed,” Taylor says.

It may sound early, but planning ahead gives people more time to understand their options, compare policies and make decisions while they are still healthy and financially positioned to do so. Waiting until care is suddenly needed can significantly narrow those options.

Professional Benefits works with employers, executives and individuals to help them evaluate long-term care coverage and determine what makes sense for their particular circumstances. The team can also help clients review existing policies, explore options that may include memory care and work with employers interested in adding long-term care benefits to an existing benefits package.

“People sometimes think their assets will be enough to cover care, but that’s rarely the case,” Taylor says.

Long-term care can be expensive, and relying solely on personal savings or family members may not provide the security people expect. Understanding what insurance may cover, what government programs may or may not cover and how those pieces fit together can help families make more informed decisions.

The goal is not to dwell on the possibility of needing care. It is to make sure that if the unexpected happens, you have a plan.

With guidance from Professional Benefits, planning for long-term care can become less about worrying about the future and more about protecting the choices, independence and quality of life you want to have for years to come.