By John Halterman Put your hand up if you’d willingly ignore a vital piece of your retirement plan. No one? Yeah, I didn’t think I’d have any takers on that. Unfortunately, way too many people do just that when they neglect to create a long-term care plan. I get it. No one wants to think about the day when they need help with the basics of life, but with more than half of people turning 65 needing some form of long-term care during their lifetimes. (1) That’s why it’s critical to have a plan to pay for these costs. When you are healthy and thriving, it’s easy to focus solely on building your savings to provide for your basic retirement expenses and forget about the potential need for long-term care as you age. But no matter what your health looks like today, creating a long-term care plan now will empower you to research your options and choose the strategies that are the best fit for you. How Much Will Long-Term Care Set Me Back? Long-term care costs are so high that they could potentially wipe out a bulk of your retirement funds. On average nationally, it costs $280 per day or $8,517 per month for a private room in a nursing home. (2) To make matters worse, because of their longer life expectancy, women pay significantly more than men for long-term care. The average amount of time women require long-term care is 3.7 years (or around 44 months), adding up to $374,748 in expenses in today’s costs for that private room. (3) For men, who need long-term care for an average of 2.2 years (or around 26 months), that equals $221,442. And costs are only projected to increase. In the past five years, long-term care expenses have risen by about 3%, with a big jump in prices from 2016-2017. (4) By 2028, the average cost is expected to increase to $5,376 per month for assisted living, (5) compared to $4,000 today. (6) These costs can vary based on the level of care and amenities needed, as well as the size of the room and where you live, so your first step in making your long-term care plan is to decide what type of care you prefer. How To Choose The Care You Want If you have a family history of or early signs of Alzheimer’s or dementia or if you suffer from a chronic disease that will require ongoing care or daily assistance, look into facilities that offer the care you’ll need, and share your thoughts with your family. Would you prefer to live in a nursing home or would you like nurses and assistants to come to your residence? Do you want a religious community of care? There are several preferences to take into consideration when considering your long-term care plan. Having the option to make these choices yourself lends much-needed autonomy to your long-term care plan. If you wait until you need it, you may not be in good enough health to make the decision, or the size of your savings might determine the care you receive. Whether you’re worried about potential health concerns or want to protect your hard-earned wealth, it’s important to understand the long-term care insurance options available to you and whether or not a policy makes sense for your lifestyle and needs. How Can I Foot The Bill? Long-term care coverage isn’t cheap, but it pales in comparison to long-term care costs. Here are some options to consider when creating a long-term care strategy. 1. Traditional Long-Term Care Insurance With traditional long-term care insurance, you pay a premium in exchange for the ability to receive benefits if they are needed. If you need long-term care at some point, the policy provides you with money to pay for it. However, if you never need long-term care, then you receive no benefits. It’s a “use it or lose it” policy. Just like any insurance policy, you will have some coverage choices to make. Customized Coverage You can choose the level of insurance you want and select the daily benefit amount for care in a nursing home. You can also add home-care coverage if that is a priority for you. To choose the right coverage amounts, you need to know what the cost of long-term care looks like in your state. For example, a private room at a nursing home in West Virginia will cost an average of $11,528 a month, and hiring a home health aide could set you back over $41,000 for the year. Length Of Coverage You must also decide on the length of time you want the benefits to be paid. Common options are one, two, three, or five years, or for your lifetime. Logically, the longer the benefit period, the higher the premiums you will need to pay. Benefit Stipulations Your policy will also indicate “benefit triggers,” or conditions that must exist to receive benefits from the insurance company. A tax-qualified plan only pays benefits once you are unable to perform two of six activities of daily living without substantial assistance for at least 90 days, or have a cognitive impairment like Alzheimer’s. Non-tax-qualified plans may have less restrictive benefit triggers. Inflation And Premiums If you want, you can have your benefits increase with inflation to match future care costs. It is also important to note that premiums can increase as they are not usually set in stone. 2. Life Insurance With A Long-Term Care Rider With a traditional long-term care policy, people sometimes feel that if they buy it and don’t use it, they would have wasted their money. Because of this, several hybrid products have emerged. One very popular solution is a life insurance policy with a long-term care rider. This strategy is enticing because if long-term care is needed, the funds are available through your policy’s death benefit. If you don’t spend the total benefit available, your beneficiaries will receive the balance upon your death, thus no wasted money. If you need life insurance, getting your long-term care coverage as a rider may be a good option. This way, someone will be benefiting from the premiums you are paying, whether it is you or your heirs. 3. Annuity With A Long-Term Care Rider If you don’t need life insurance, another combination product may be better suited to your situation. If you purchase a variable annuity, you may have the alternative of adding a long-term care rider onto the contract. Since 2010, the IRS allows for the long-term care portion to be used tax-free. (7) After purchasing the annuity, you would select the amount of long-term care coverage you want, often two to three times the face value of the annuity, as well as the length of time you want coverage. Finally, you have to decide if you want inflation protection. This option makes money available to you if you need long-term care. Otherwise, you can cash out the annuity when it matures (in which case you would lose your long-term care coverage) or let it accumulate and ultimately pass on the assets to your heirs. Obtaining long-term care coverage through an annuity can be appealing because it is generally less expensive than stand-alone insurance and you can receive coverage without medical underwriting. Annuities tend to be less common than the other choices, though, because of the current low-interest rates and the large up-front investment. 4. Save On Your Own Consider starting a savings plan specifically for future healthcare needs. One option is to create a separate, high-yield savings account and contribute a specific amount every month, building a contingency fund for whatever healthcare expenses come your way. If you end up not needing long-term care, the money is still yours and can be used for your living costs, unexpected expenses, or an inheritance for your heirs. Get Your Long-Term Care Plan Under Wraps Regardless of where you are in life and the financial obstacles you face, the important thing is that you start planning for this aspect of retirement. Thinking about the need for long-term care can be deeply unsettling and confusing. That’s why we are here to help you make the right decisions for your life. At Beacon Wealth Management, we understand that thinking about the need for long-term care can be deeply unsettling and confusing. As such, we are here to help you make the right decisions for your life. If you’re tired of muddling through important retirement planning issues on your own, call (304) 626-3900 or email me at jhalterman@bwmwv.com to get our help! About John John Halterman, best-selling author and nationally published blogger, has been featured as a financial guest expert on the shows of self-help gurus Brian Tracy and Jack Canfield, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, and has appeared on ABC, FOX, BRAVO, NBC, CBS, and A&E. John is the expert host of the weekly WDTV News 5 segment “Solutions 4 Financial Independence.” As an authority on wealth management, he has been invited by hundreds of institutions such as universities, federal agencies, professional associations, and large energy and utility corporations to be a guest speaker and educational event host. Event topics include retiring ready, managing down market investment risk, how to reduce your tax burden, and transferring your family wealth in the most tax advantageous way. John is the founder and owner of Beacon Wealth Management, specializing in helping entrepreneurs, professional practitioners, and retirees overcome the 5 major challenges facing successful families. He is a warm communicator with a passion for helping people transform their financial futures. John understands the multifaceted set of financial worries people face as they become more successful and enter the Retirement Red Zone. He empathizes personally with each client and delivers a collaborative client experience that empowers people to reach their life goals. With more than two decades of experience, John’s professional credentials include Certified Wealth Strategist, Accredited Investment Fiduciary, Certified Estate Planner, Chartered Federal Employee Benefits Consultant, Professional Plan Consultant, and Registered Financial Consultant. He is also a past member of Ed Slott’s Master Elite IRA Study Group. A native of Weston, West Virginia, John served in the United States Air Force prior to becoming a wealth advisor. Today, he resides with his family in Clarksburg, West Virginia. He and his wife, Lisa, have been married since 2005 and have three amazing children. A family-oriented man, he enjoys giving back to his community, coaching youth sports, landscaping, architectural design, and playing racquetball. __________ (1) https://www.morningstar.com/articles/879494/75-mustknow-statistics-about-longterm-care-2018-ed (2) https://www.genworth.com/aging-and-you/finances/cost-of-care.html (3) https://longtermcare.acl.gov/the-basics/how-much-care-will-you-need.html (4) https://www.genworth.com/dam/Americas/US/PDFs/Consumer/corporate/cost-of-care/131168_081417.pdf (5) https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2017/06/10/your-2017-guide-to-long-term-care-and-long-term-ca.aspx (6) https://www.genworth.com/aging-and-you/finances/cost-of-care.html (7) https://longtermcareinsurancepartner.com/blog/using-annuities-to-pay-for-long-term-care