The State of Arkansas defines Long Term Care Insurance as any insurance
policy that provides coverage for not less than 12 consecutive months for one or more medically necessary services provided
in a setting other than an acute care unit of a hospital.
You
do not have to be admitted to a Nursing Home.
Meet our Expert
Tina DeMaine, with over 15 years experience in life and
health insurance manages our Life, Health and Group insurance programs. Tina earned
her Life Underwriter Training Council Fellow designation
in 1994. Her outstanding qualifications and expertise offer you some of the best information and counselling you can find. Tina
is in our Little Rock office and can be contacted at (501) 224-6666,
or 1-888-214-3149 She can also be reached by email at tdemaine @ mcgheeinsurance.com.
What is Long Term Care Insurance?
Long Term Care Insurance pays for special needs like Skilled
Nursing Care, Intermediate Nursing Care, Home Health Care and Custodial
Care.
Most hospitals have a Skilled Nursing Care section.
Its purpose is to provide daily nursing and rehabilitative care by medical personnel under a doctor's orders.
Intermediate Nursing Care provides the same type of care as Skilled Nursing
but it is not done daily -- and it can be done in your home. Speech therapy and physical therapy are just two examples.
Home Health Care covers events like nurse visits to your home, chore
services and respite care. Respite care provides someone to relieve your regular caregiver from those difficult duties, usually one
or two days a month.
You Must Qualify
Most people don't think about Long Term Care Insurance until later
in life even though a U. S. Department of Health and Human Services study shows that persons age 65 and over have a 40% chance of needing
long term care.
Wakely Actuarial Services studied 100,000 applications for Long Term Care
Insurance submitted during 2003 and 2004. Their study revealed that 9 out of 10 applications were approved for persons between
the ages of 50 and 59. That number dropped to 4 out of 10 for persons age 80.
In Arkansas, preexisting conditions for which you
have received no treatment within six months of your application for Long Term Care Insurance cannot be held against you.
You must "health qualify" for Long Term Care Insurance.
Types of Long Term Care Insurance
Your Long Term Care Insurance can be personalized. Comprehensive policies
are available at a higher cost, but there are specialized policies as well. Depending upon whose study you read, 70% to 80% of home
care is provided by family and friends. And, in some cases, the financial burden can be staggering.
Perhaps you simply want a policy that would provide Home Health Care or
something similar that would reduce the burden on your family and friends.
The Kaiser Report
A study conducted by the Kaiser Foundation in June 2005 shows
a great lack of information among people about long term care. When asked how the costs of long term care would be paid, 30%
said insurance and 16% said personal savings while only 13% said government programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
Reality tells a different story. Nationwide, only 8% of long term care
costs are paid by insurance policies while 46% are covered by Medicaid. In Arkansas, 76% of nursing home patients are
on Medicaid. Adding to the "information problem" is that a Kaiser study revealed 58% of those surveyed underestimated
the cost of long term care.
How May We Help You?
Is Long Term Care Insurance something you should investigate? The
agents at McGhee Insurance Agency have been trained to help you get the best coverage at the best price
for your personal situation.
Little
Rock Office: (501) 224-6666 or 1-888-214-3149 - Call Tina.
Sherwood Office: (501) 392-0300 or 1-888-861-8368 - Call Shannon.
Conway Office: (501) 327-4666 or 1-888-563-5656 - Call Cheryl. |
