Research carried out on behalf of long-term care funding specialist Partnership revealed that 53 per cent of the 467 people quizzed said they would sell their homes to pay for care rather than fund the costs through a structured savings plan or annuity scheme on the back of professional advice.

Ben Heffer, insight analyst for Defaqto, said independent research from the firm found less than 20 per cent of financial advisers said they recommend insurance-based products when quizzed last year. He added:

“On the one hand people are not going to financial advisers for help with long-term care. On the other hand we know from our own research that many advisers do not even consider long-term care when advising their clients. The problem would be that people simply do not see funding long-term care as a priority. They know they should be saving a bit for retirement, they know they should have life assurance if they have a mortgage, but they probably expect the state to care for them when they are old and when it doesn’t they have to use their assets – usually the home. If advisers were more pro-active about long-term care, at least those people who have a financial adviser would get to hear about it and that would be a start.”

Read the rest at the link below

Long-term care still on the back burner

Gentiva provides in-home care for patients, most of whom are elderly. Odyssey provides hospice care for those in their last days.

The merger suggests convergence and consolidation across the wide spectrum of care for aging Americans.  The spectrum includes home health care, assisted living, long-term health care, nursing home care and hospice, says Bill Buhr, an analyst with rating firm Morningstar.

The Gentiva acquisition of Odyssey, pulling two of those elements into one organization, is “a transaction that can overnight change other industry player strategies,” he said.

Sophia Snyder, an analyst with market research firm IBISWorld, agrees. The Gentiva-Odyssey deal is an important diversification for a provider of home health care, she says.

It’s a wise strategy as Medicare and Medicaid restrain and even reduce payments to providers of health services. Most patients with in-home care, long-term care, nursing homes and hospice are under the umbrellas of Medicare and Medicaid.

Improvements in coverage won’t kick in until 2014, she notes. “By merging with other providers, industry operators are able to spread costs, such as administration, marketing and purchases, over more locations.”

Gentiva’s Odyssey Buy Sector Game Changer

That includes 35 percent increases in July, September, December 2011 and March 2013. There’s a final 5 percent increase in June 2014. Compounded, the rate hikes amount to a 260 percent increase. Hulbert is among more than 6,600 policyholders in California and 140,000 nationwide affected by financial troubles at industry giant Conseco Inc. in Carmel, Ind.

Not everybody will be hit so hard; initial premium increases in California range from 20 percent to 35 percent, but a local hotline for seniors is getting bombarded by calls. Letters started appearing in local mailboxes in late April. Conseco has nine different forms in California. Some letters offer two options; some three. Policyholders can take the rate hikes as they come and keep the coverage they’ve always had. They can scale back benefits to get a lower premium, or they can take a one-time offer: a lump-sum, non-forfeiture benefit. This means the policy is considered paid up. The company will keep the money paid into the account, minus any claims paid or coming. Policyholders can file claims against the amount until it is exhausted, at which time the policy will end. One letter gives a 90-day limit for response. Another gives July 13 as the effective date for the change.

“They’ve sent out a letter that frightens seniors likely to need care,” said Margaret Reilly, program manager at HICAP Services of Northern California, a Medicare consulting organization. “One person describes it as a golden handshake: ‘They really want to get rid of us because we cost them a lot of money.’ ”

Long-term care rates jump, seniors worry

The site has some good information on understanding, planning and paying for long term care.  They also have a planning kit that they can mail to you.  There is also a great page of related links that can help in your research.

A really good section is on the paying for the long term care.  They have a great section on private funding which includes long term care insurance, annuities, trusts, etc.  I didn’t see Reverse Mortgages listed which surprised me since 90% of Reverse Mortgages are government insured products.

Of all the websites I’ve seen, I believe that this is the best one I’ve seen to get people started in their own planning or in the planning for their family members.

I love that the article starts out with “During their 50 years of marriage, Lee has managed the portfolio, paid the bills, and calculated the taxes. Jane has been more than happy to let him do so.”  This is an all too common occurrence that just sets women up for a dangerous fall in retirement.  Not knowing where the money is, not understanding all the insurance in place, not having the skills to manage the finances on your own could all lead to financial ruin and a disappointing retirement.

The recommendations to this couple were: “Consider buying long-term care insurance to provide a financial safety net in case one spouse falls ill.  Update the old wills and execute other important estate planning documents.  Identify specific adviser, family members, or friends who can fill key positions to help Jane with finances should Lee die or become disabled…”  Yes, yes, and yes.  I love the fact that long term care insurance is on the first of the list – right where it should be.  Without proper Long Term Care insurance in place, all the estate planning documents you have and all the advisors in place won’t be able to help you salvage what remains.

Finally some good advice…

The annual reports for Social Security and Medicare are out and what does that mean?  Some are predicting some debating among presidential candidates and others are predicting not much difference from last year, but whatever the predictions, the fact remains that to be sure you have enough to retire and for your long term care, you had better have your own plans.

It looks as though there aren’t many changes between last year’s Social Security report and this year’s.  The news release claims that the “Trustees Report shows improvement in the projected long-term financial status of the Social Security program”, but admits that these improvements are “the result of methodological changes for projecting certain aspects of immigration.”  Key dates remain unchanged.  These dates include the fact that tax revenues are still estimated to fall below program costs in a very short 9 years.   Trust Funds are still estimated to become “exhausted” by 2041.

The full report  on Social Security is rather lengthy, but the news release is worth a quick view.

Social Security seems to be treading water, but Medicare is not faring as well.  Their report states that based on projections and no changes, the fund will be exhausted by 2019.

What does this mean for us?  As we’ve discussed in past postings: making your own plans are your best bet for retirement and long term care.  Knowledge is power…start researching long term care insurance, reverse mortgages, private funds, etc.  

A couple of good articles on the released reports can be found on MSNBC and Forbes.com.

Yesterday’s article out of the Knoxville Business Journal cites a study that estimates the cost to business in productivity due to care-taking of older relatives is “between $17.1 billion and $33.6 billion annually, or $2,110 for every full-time worker who cares for an adult, according to a 2006 study by MetLife Market Mature Institute and the National Alliance for Caregiving.”

In an attempt to combat this loss or at least grasp it better, there are several companies that are getting innovative in their treatment of employees in long term care-giving situations.  The innovations seem to fit under two different categories.

1.  Flexible Work Arrangements.  Flexible Hours,  working from home, job-sharing, taking an unpaid leave of absence, etc.  A more innovative/cutting edge idea from the Knoxville article was a sick day bank where employees can donate a sick day each year for fellow employees to use.

2.  Providing resources outside of work.  Having support groups, seminars on pertinent topics, take away materials, access to counseling, access to long term care insurance, etc. 

Any other innovative ways employers are dealing with long term care-givers at your office?

1.  People want to Age in Place.  This goes back to study after study that says seniors want to retire and stay as long as possible in their homes.  Nursing homes and assisted living centers are increasingly being viewed as “only for rehab,” or “only as a last resort.” 

2.  The number of seniors is increasing.  Simple case of demand.  It’s obvious that not only are we are living longer and need more aid at home, the sheer numbers of the Baby Boom generation beginning the road to retirement is going to create even greater demand for in home care needs.

3.  Chasing money.  And article in the Colorado Springs Gazette puts it bluntly: “Growth primarily is among companies…that are not certified to accept Medicare and Medicaid patients. Instead, they serve self-paying patients and patients who have long-term care insurance, she said. Home health care agencies in Colorado provide about 3 million visits per year to more than 60,000 individuals, constituting nearly $400 million in expenditures.”

Yet another benefit of Long Term Care Insurance…growth of small business!