Long-Term Care: Protecting Yourself from Unplanned Expenses

Folks looking ahead to their twilight years often worry about losing their life’s work to long-term care facility fees. For some, the solution is simple: rely on children and loved ones for needed support. Unfortunately, this does not always work out. State law dictates that should you end up in a condition where staying at home is deemed unsafe, a qualified nursing facility must take over care. If caught by this unprepared, the consequences can be costly. Accordingly, everyone ought to invest in a little planning now to protect their assets from being eaten up by unforeseen expenses in the future.

Financial Planning for Long-Term Care

There are two avenues for meeting the costs of a care facility: private and public. The former means either paying expenses out of pocket or tapping in to a previously-purchased insurance plan. The latter means Medicaid—but only if you qualify.

Medicare Doesn’t Have You Covered

Medicare, the government-sponsored healthcare initiative implemented by Franklin D. Roosevelt back in 1966, is exactly what it sounds like: medical insurance. Accordingly, coverage extends only to medical issues, defined as curable conditions or things from which you can expect to get better. Long-term care doesn’t count. Medicare does not include Medicaid, which is what you need should end up in a nursing facility.

Medicaid Comes with Conditions

Not everyone qualifies for Medicaid; in fact, many don’t. The program is designed for households defined as low-income, meaning, essentially, that you ought not have more than a house, a vehicle, and a few thousand dollars in the bank to gain coverage. Luckily, a little bit of strategic planning can gain you the peace of mind of being protected by the program.

Arrange Your Affairs with Care in Mind

An experienced elder law and estate planning attorney can instruct you on arranging your affairs such that you might cover care privately for as long as you like and have Medicaid step in when the time is right.

With such a plan in place, you can rest easy knowing that your life’s work will pass on to loved ones and not end up devoured by nursing facility fees you never asked for in the first place.

Reach Out for a Free Consultation

Providing advice on how best to gain Medicaid coverage is but one of a range of estate planning services provided by our office. Should you have questions about this or any other matter related to asset organization, don’t hesitate to reach out. Consultation is always free as we believe it is on us to ensure we can provide value before asking for your business.

Contact the Estate Planning Attorneys at the Law Firm of Christopher W. Dumm

Contact us for more information on how to get started planning your estate. We’ll explain the entire process and give you a checklist of things to do before meeting with an estate planning attorney in order to save time, money and aggravation.