Do you have a long-term care insurance policy? If you do, your foresight is a decision that can help protect you and your assets from the rising cost of healthcare. However, it’s essential to dust off that policy and understand what it does and does not cover should you ever need it. Typically, long term care insurance policies have coverage gaps that are critical to understanding. Once you know those gaps, you may find that a becoming a member of a Life Plan At Home program can help fill them.
LiveWell By Blakeford is the only Life Plan At Home program in Middle Tennessee. When we help families consider a LiveWell membership plan, we always ask about a long-term care insurance policy that they might already have in place. While LiveWell can be a complete solution for your future, we are finding that many of the families we meet have long-standing insurance policies. They want to keep their polices and are looking for ways to supplement their coverage. Hence, they consider LiveWell.
Breaking It Down
It’s important to understand the differences between long-term care insurance and LiveWell By Blakeford to determine which direction an individual or couple should take.
Ready for Benefits
Long-term care insurance (LTCi) is a financial arrangement that pays benefits when you become sick and disabled. Typically, policies require that you prove that you need substantial assistance with two or three activities of daily living before you are eligible for your benefits. (Activities of Daily Living are Bathing, Dressing, Toileting, Transferring, Feeding and Continence Care). LiveWell’s benefits begin from the moment you become a member with wellness services and then, no matter how significant the health change, you receive services in your home. Small health changes are covered (like the flu or surgery) as well as more extensive, more advanced needs.
The Waiting Game
LTCi policies typically incorporate an “elimination period” where you must wait for a fixed period and pay privately for care needed before receiving the financial benefit. LiveWell does not make you wait to receive coverage financially or otherwise. As soon as a change is detected – via member self-report and brief check-in screening by the care coordinator, then care is covered, period. With LTCi policies, waiting periods differ by policy, which is another crucial element to understand if you have one.
The Care Management Advantage
Most LTCi policies do not cover care management. Some do, but it’s the exception rather than the rule. Even if your policy does have this benefit, that person is unlikely to be involved in a personal way with the policyholder and only plays a role when the individual has already displayed an advanced level of need. With LiveWell, care coordination is an essential part of the service promise. LiveWell becomes your advocate. The care coordinator, trained in nursing or social work, is closely aligned with the member’s personal health/functional goals. The coordinator is available 24/7 to address unexpected needs.
Protecting Your Assets
LTCi is about offering asset protection at your highest level of need. You need to find the appropriate caregiving service(s). Sometimes that’s a challenge, especially in the middle of a health crisis. LiveWell is affiliated with a nonprofit senior services organization. Their mission is to assist older adults with health and well-being and a lifestyle of choice. That gives you tremendous peace of mind that should anything happen; you know to whom you will turn.
Working Together
Can long-term care insurance policies and LiveWell work together to provide a comprehensive plan for long term care coverage? Yes. Long term care Insurance can provide invaluable mitigation against the cost of long-term care, especially at your highest level of need. However, supplementing that with LiveWell By Blakeford might make sense for you. With LiveWell By Blakeford, you’ll see that care coordinators go the extra mile for you. LiveWell care coordinators have shown up multiple times at the emergency department on a Saturday night. They’ve spent time helping complete complex health insurance forms. They’ve set up personal emergency response systems in the home. And, they’ve given simple tips on how to use their smartphones. It’s this level of commitment and approach that makes all the difference.
Additional Resources
Financial Stability for Future Care
Preparing for Long-Term Care: Four Options to Ponder
Figuring Out the Cost Benefits of Senior Living Communities