70% of Americans over 65 will need some form of long-term care. At $90,000+ per year, just a few years of care can devastate a retirement nest egg. The right plan protects you — and your family.
Most people assume Medicare covers nursing home or in-home care. It doesn't — at least not in any meaningful way. Medicare covers only short-term skilled nursing care (up to 100 days) after a qualifying hospital stay. Everything else comes out of pocket.
That means without a plan, a 3-year nursing home stay could cost over $270,000 — wiping out savings that took a lifetime to build, and potentially leaving a spouse with nothing.
⚠️ The Spousal Poverty Trap: When one spouse needs long-term care, the costs can rapidly deplete joint assets — leaving the healthy spouse with inadequate resources to live on. Long-term care planning protects both of you, not just the person who needs care.
There's no single right answer — the best approach depends on your age, health, assets, and how you want to protect your spouse. We help you choose the right path.
A standalone policy that pays a daily or monthly benefit when you need care — at home, in an assisted living facility, or a nursing home. Premiums are lower when purchased younger and healthier.
A life insurance policy with an LTC rider — combining death benefit protection with long-term care coverage in one product. If you never need care, the full death benefit goes to your beneficiaries. Nothing is wasted.
Some annuities allow you to double or triple your benefit amount if you need long-term care. Your retirement savings do double duty — growing for retirement AND providing care protection.
Yes — most modern LTC policies cover care provided at home, in assisted living, in memory care facilities, and in nursing homes. Home care is actually what most people prefer and use first.
Benefits typically begin when you're unable to perform 2 of 6 Activities of Daily Living (bathing, dressing, eating, toileting, transferring, continence) OR when you have a cognitive impairment like Alzheimer's. A licensed healthcare professional must certify the need.
With a hybrid life/LTC policy, the unused benefit passes to your beneficiaries as a death benefit. With traditional LTC insurance, you don't receive unused premiums back — but the peace of mind and family protection have real value regardless of whether you claim.
Yes, and many carriers offer shared-benefit riders — meaning you and your spouse share a combined pool of benefits. If one spouse uses less, the other has access to more. Multi-life discounts often apply for couples applying together.