Assessing the facts:
- 60% of all Americans are expected to need long term care at some point in their lives (National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, 1999)
- 50% of nursing home residents exhaust their resources to pay for care. (U.S. Census, cited in Los Angeles Times, September 29, 2000)
- For a couple turning 65, there is a 75% chance that one of them will need long term care. (The Wall Street Journal, June 2000)
- Family caregivers provide 80% of long term care; institutions such as nursing homes provide only 20%. (ALS Association, 1999)
- 75% of all Americans over age 40 will be diagnosed with a critical illness in the next 30 years. (Lotter Actuarial Partners, cited in Annuity Market News, October 2000)
- Over 70% of people with Alzheimer's live at home and receive 75% of the assistance they need from unpaid caregivers. (Understanding Alzheimer's, Alzheimer's Association, 1999)
- "By the time most people realize they need [long term care insurance]; it's too late." (Los Angeles Times, 9/29/00)
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Assessing the risk:
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If a person does quality for Medicare coverage for nursing home care, Medicare will only cover the first 100 days of confinement. In 2002, there is a co-pay of $101.50 per day for days 21-100. Even if you already own a long term care policy with a 90-day elimination period, you would spend $7,105 out of pocket to cover the Medicare co-pay over days 21-90.
The average cost of care in a nursing home was about $5,000 in 1998 (AARP, May 2000)
The average annual cost of nursing home care in some urban areas is $73,000 per year. (Guide to Retirement Living. Summer/Fall 1999)
Care in your own home can cost $100 per day or more. (Los Angeles Times, May 2000)
Medicare pays the cost of care for only 7% of residents in assisted living facilities (ACLI, March 2000)
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