As an Orange County elder lawyer, I help people plan for long-term care costs every day.

Long-term care can include any service that helps people who have a prolonged illness. The illness can be a physical disability or a cognitive impairment such as Alzheimer’s disease or Dementia.

The services may include help with activities of daily living, home health care, adult day care, hospice care, nursing home care, or care in an assisted living facility.

The level of assistance required can include physical therapy, administration of medication, and help with daily activities such as bathing, eating, and dressing.

However, paying for long-term care is another story.  In fact, for most people, paying for long-term care can be financially devastating.

Contrary to what many people believe, Medicare rarely covers costs associated with long term care.  And in the majority of cases, these costs are astronomical. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the average costs in the U.S. for long-term care include:

  • $198/day for a semi-private room in a nursing home
  • $219/day for a private room in a nursing home
  • $3,131/month for care in an Assisted Living Facility (for a one-bedroom unit)
  • $21/hour for a Home Health Aide
  • $19/hour for a Homemaker services
  • $67/day for care in an Adult Day Health Care Center

And unfortunately, it’s so easy to think that because you are now young and healthy you don’t need to worry about long-term care, but consider these statistics:

  • Life expectancy after age 65 has now increased to 17.9 years, up from 1940 when life expectancy after 65 was only 13 extra years.  The longer people live, the greater the chance they will need assistance due to chronic conditions.
  • 44% of people reaching age 65 are expected to enter a nursing home at least once in their lifetime and 53% of them will stay for one year or longer.

So, the bottom line is that millions of us are going to need long-term care.

That’s why it is important to put an estate plan in place that will protect your assets if you become disabled.  I’ve seen far too many instances where a family has waited until a crisis strikes to take action.  And at that point it’s too late to save their assets and income from the hands these long-term care facilities.

But instead, you can talk to an estate planning attorney now to ensure your bills will be covered in the long-run without losing your house, your assets or other income sources in the process.

To get started, simply call me, your neighborhood Orange County elder lawyer at 949-260-1400 for a free Family Wealth Planning Session.

Together we’ll walk through the complicated world of long-term care planning to ensure your family is protected when they need it the most.  I look forward to hearing from you.