Recognizing the rising cost of health care and in particular of long-term care, you may be investigating the option for getting long term care insurance. This can help to give you peace of mind that if you need advanced care support, such as that provided by a nursing home, that you will be able to afford it.

Many people do not realize that long term care insurance is a separate kind of insurance from Medicare and that Medicare does not cover the vast majority of expenses in nursing homes after a specific period. If you have extensive need for support with activities of daily living, you may need to qualify for Medicaid, cover these expenses in private pay or use long term care insurance benefits.

Another downside is that most long term care insurance policies have a built-in 60 to 90 day waiting period. This means you won’t be able to use their payment options right away even if your policy is active. Read the fine print on your own policy to verify this.

One of the biggest benefits of LTI is that if you are healthy, you are more likely to stay in your home and maintain your independence longer. One of the biggest downsides of long-term care insurance is that it can be extremely expensive and your premiums can increase after you buy the policy. There may also be specific deadlines for making your ongoing payments to the long-term care insurance company. Many people are shocked by the extensive cost of long-term care insurance particularly when those premiums can go up annually.

 Schedule a time to meet with an experienced elder lawyer if you believe that long term care insurance is not appropriate for your current plan and you wish to discuss options for qualifying for Medicaid.