subject: Long Term Care, The Things You Need To Know [print this page] There will come a time that you might suffer from prolonged illnesses, disability or cognitive impairment thats why having a long term care plan is essential. Long term care may have become a big concern to many residents in the US today, but it is an issue which should be met and overcome for the better.
Long-term care encompasses a wide range of medical, personal and social services. It includes services provided by home health care agencies, adult day care centres, traditional nursing homes and continuing care retirement communities.
It is offered by private insurance company which is termed as long term care insurance that covers benefits for a wide range of services usually not covered by regular health insurance, Medicare or Medicaid supplement insurance.
In every LTCi, qualified policies are offered wherein benefits vary based on the type of policy or certificate the individual purchases. These benefits include nursing home, respite, adult day care, bed reservation, assisted living facilities, home health services, hospice, and, home and community-based services.
When it comes to rates and costs of premiums, these also vary depending on the individuals age, type of coverage, and the company issuing the policy. Common provisions that policies cover include (a) coverage of at least 24 months of skilled, intermediate or custodial nursing home coverage supervised or recommended by a doctor, (b) must provide at least one lower level of care, such as home health care or adult day care. The benefits for this lower level of care must have at least half the benefits of the nursing home care, in both the benefit period and the benefit amount.
Moreover, long term care insurance also covers inflation protection. It is a benefit granted to individuals up to age 76 and becomes optional for those older. However, there are also some set of requirements included in this provision, these are:
(1)Policies or certificates issued to a person who is age 60 or under must contain annual compound inflation coverage.
(2)Policies or certificates issued to a person age 61to 75 must contain compound inflation coverage.
(3)There is no requirement for inflation coverage on policies or certificates issued to an individual after age 76.
Long term care plays a very significant role in ensuring a more comfortable life for the elderly nowadays. Though the US faces troubles with its health system, good thing is states are enacting new laws and provisions in expanding their own partnership programs for long term care.
