Early on in my married life, the subject of Long Term Care Insurance was never a conversation at the dinner table. As is common with most people today, we certainly weren’t thinking about aging – choosing to live (and spend) in the here and now rather than dwell on realities aging might bring.
But the realities of aging – of becoming ill and dying – are an unavoidable part of everyone’s journey. While we ourselves might still be relatively young and healthy, those who have come before us are sadly growing older. Before long, the case for Long Term Care Insurance is profoundly staring us in the face.
My grandparents were not wealthy, and truthfully, I’m not even sure such plans existed in the 1970s and 1980s, when it would have been customary for them to obtain.
All of them sadly wound up spending their remaining days in what I considered some of the worst nursing home facilities in New Jersey. They were dirty, overcrowded, understaffed, uncaring and visitation was limited.
Why you might ask did they spend their final days in such places? Because that was all they could afford on their meager savings.
I’ve also seen first-hand the many benefits Long Term Care Insurance can provide. The ability to comfortably stay in one’s home and have individualized care and attention. It’s invaluable and I believe adds a quality to the rest of your life, and to your family’s life, that so many overlook.
Financial expert Suze Orman says, “We have home insurance to protect us from the possibility of damage to our homes. We have auto insurance to help us in the event of an accident or injury. It makes a lot of sense to have insurance that can provide ample support if you become too ill to care for yourself.”
When my wife and I signed up for policies, our advisor told us that a few years ago he signed up a man and his wife who were then in their early 40s (very similar to my wife and I).
Several years later he learned that the man had died of a brain tumor. The policy provided care for him at home, so he could spend as much of his remaining time as possible with his wife and his two young daughters. That time was an immeasurable gift he and his family would never have gotten had he not had a Long Term Care Insurance plan in place.
Obviously, policies vary by provider and I’m not here to recommend one plan over the other. What I am here to tell you is the peace of mind it provides. To know that lifeline is there to help combat the rising and uncontrollable cost of healthcare provides my wife and I with continual solace.
Think of all the money we waste on material things we’ll never see a financial return on. Why not save that money and make an investment in yourself – in your health.
