Articles by Clay Cotton on ArticleSnatch.com

Long Term Care Insurance: Basically, It's All About Choice

Sat, 14 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

LTCi policies can help you avoid being a burden, depending on others for care. They also help you protect and preserve precious assets and keep control of your financial affairs, ensure a higher standard of living and give you far greater choices should you need home health or continuing care, which nearly half of us will. LTCi policies cover a variety of medical, personal and supportive services., and these services can be provided at home, in an assisted living setting or in a nursing facility for an extended period, as appropriate and depending upon your policy's contract. Long Term Care Insurance: Basically, it's all about choices: * Staying independent and receiving quality care at home. * Freeing your family and friends from the responsibility of caring for you. * Spending your life savings the way you want. The days when long-term care meant going to a nursing home are long, long gone. Today, if you need help with day-to-day activities like shopping, meal preparation, bathing, dressing or nursing care, it's easy to receive it in your very own home, if your policy includes home care. **End Summary** Topics: long-term-care]]> long-term-care-insurance]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, and his wife, Kimberly, write for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Thanks, Mom..! ( Some reasons why you might want to get long term care insurance )

Fri, 13 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

How many of us say that we will take care of our parents if they became disabled and could not live alone? Raise your hands! If you're like me, you have told your mom or dad, "I'll take care of you, don't worry. I'll always be there for you!" Of course, I must point out that I don't own a house, my husband and I constantly move due to being renters, and now I'm my husband's full time caregiver. So it's a moot point. Where would I put my mother? Would I have enough energy to take care of 2 people, by myself, while also dealing with my own health issues of Hepatitis B and C? In truth, We just never know what our futures hold, so SAYING you'll take care of your parents and actually being able to do so when the time comes may be two different stories. Caregiving requires someone who's life purpose revolves around service, I think. With the best case scenario, it takes mental, financial and emotional preparation. Yet most of us don't have that luxury. Care giving is usually an unexpected necessity, unless other arrangements have been made prior to the need. **End Summary** Topics: asset-protection]]> burden]]> care-givers]]> caregiver]]> caregivers]]> caregiving]]> elder-care]]> elderly]]> elders]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, and his wife, Kimberly, write for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

My Care Giving Angel

Thu, 12 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

My Care Giving Angel.. It's been a few weeks since Cindy started coming over to spend time with Clay - to relieve me of my caregiving duties. She comes at least once a week. What a blessing! The long term care of any individual can be exhausting, at times, so I now call Cindy "my angel"Â"Â¦ I still haven't done anything "fun"Â"Â¦..yet, but I do take my time with errands now, and sometimes I even take a stroll around the town's square. I also still check in if I'm gone more than 2 hours, just in case. It's hard to let go completely. When I took care of my grandmother, who had Alzheimer's, I didn't feel as much need to be with her every moment. She didn't have long term mobility issues, she just couldn't remember things. She minded the big signs we put up all over the house, and she wore her name tag with her address and phone number on it, so she was more self-sufficient. Clay is almost a quadrapelegic. **End Summary** Topics: care-givers]]> caregiver]]> caregivers]]> caregiving]]> burden]]> disability]]> elder-care]]> long-term-care]]> respite]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, and his wife, Kimberly, write for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Long-Term Care Protection can be Tough Decision

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 00:00:00 -0400

We've all heard the horror stories about elderly people who can't take care of themselves moving into costly nursing homes and "outliving their money."' As Americans live longer, more and more of us will need some sort of long-term care, and the insurance industry has a blizzard of policies to help pay for it. Today, the cost of nursing home care averages about $71,000 a year nationwide, and the average patient stays for 2.4 years "" for a total cost of about $170,400, according the AARP. So I contacted AARP and got a quote from its designated provider, MetLife. The results seemed encouraging. For $44.76 a month, a 55-year-old man can get a policy that would pay up to $131,400 in long-term care costs. Suppose I paid $44.76 a month for 30 years, moved to a nursing home and used the entire benefit. I'd have paid a mere $16,114 to get all that coverage. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. This "Basic"' policy would pay for an assisted living facility or nursing home, but not for care in my home or to help defray costs of care provided by friends or family. **End Summary** Topics: asset-protection]]> assets]]> elder-care]]> estate-planning]]> financial-planning]]> home-care]]> investing]]> john-hancock]]> long-term-care]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, and his wife, Kimberly, write for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Obama, Clinton Spotlight Long Term Care Insurance Industry

Thu, 14 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0400

In April 2007, Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton requested that our Government Accountability Office examine the long term care insurance industry's track-record for claims, premium increases and those increases' relation to LTCi policy lapses. Will they find dirt under the rug? Well, I'll give you the answer! If you look at the long term care insurance industry's claims pay-outs, you'd be encouraged. Claim denials are extremely low compared to other types of insurance - and LTCi companies pay a LOT of claims" - $3.3 billion in 2006 alone. The largest claim as of Dec. 2006 was over $875,000!!! (Can you imagine paying that out of your pocket?) So, kudos for long term care insurance. However, there are some LTCi companies that have given the entire industry a bad name, as well as giving consumers reason to pause. Companies that have sold inexpensive policies with lots of bells and whistles have felt the need to either sell off their long term care insurance business, ask for rate increases on existing policy holders or even deny or delay claims. **End Summary** Topics: benefits]]> long-term-care-insurance]]> ltci]]> premiums]]> risk]]> obama]]> clinton]]> congress]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, and his wife, Kimberly, write for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Congress Scrutinizes Long Term Care Insurance

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 00:00:00 -0400

Conseco and Penn Treaty Long Term Care insurance companies must be biting their nails to the quick, as the House Committee on Energy and Commerce breathe down their necks and the General Accountability Office closes in. Conseco hired a great ad agency. I loved their long term care insurance commercials. They were so funny! Yet every time I watched them, I couldn't help but cringe. My concern was that people would buy a Conseco policy, then perhaps someday their rates would go up, or worse yet, their claims might get denied. Clay and I knew that, as far back as the 1990's, Conseco was selling relatively inexpensive policies to lots of unhealthy people. Now, approving "sickies" for long term care insurance seems compassionate, doesn't it? Of course it does. I sure wish companies would approve more, but that's not how insurance works. Companies with smart actuaries know that insurance can only work when there are more "low risk" policies sold, than there are "high risk" sold. That way, more money is coming in than going out. More premium payments, less benefit pay-outs. That's how the "pool" of money held by insurance companies stays strong. **End Summary** Topics: congress]]> conseco]]> hillary]]> long-term-care]]> long-term-care-insurance]]> ltci]]> nursing-home]]> obama]]> penn-treaty]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Know Thyself - The Cardinal Financial Panning Rule?

Thu, 15 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0400

While we often apply the rule to evaluating risk tolerance, it works for all aspects of financial management. Raw numbers mean nothing if you have to go against your established behavior patterns to achieve them. To put it even more simply, if the success of your retirement, [tag]investment[/tag] or money management plan depends on you becoming a systematic saver, and you've never demonstrated that ability, you're probably dooming yourself to failure. Psychologists know that few behaviors can succeed if they conflict with historical patterns supported by deeper beliefs, values and ultimately, your basic identity. The fact is some of us have the discipline to save and others don't. A young woman I know of is "a saver", to the tune of $2,000 a month. She didn't spend her excess cash but stashed it away for her dream home. Yet I know plenty of young people who've lived rent free or nearly rent free at home for years and hardly saved a dime. And these are examples of "root identities" that govern our lower-level "behaviors". The Know Yourself rule also applies to your life situation. **End Summary** Topics: 401(k)]]> 401-(k)]]> 401k]]> alzheimers]]> alzheimers disease]]> asset protection]]> assets]]> burden]]> caregiving]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

For Smart Financial Planning - Know Thyself and Thy Situation

Mon, 12 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0400

"Know Thyself and Thy Situation" is a financial planning rule that applies to accounting for financial events that you absolutely know are going to happen and events that have a probability of happening. We're talking about both expenses that can and should be predicted and about unpredictable emergencies and catastrophes. Especially, you must insure for your likelihood of long term care, for which there is a 50/50 chance, but only if you plan to live past age 65. For example, for younger folks, if you have more than just one child, the odds are good that at least one of them is going to need braces; both of ours did at $5,000 a pop. If you don't have a full dental plan, then you need to put money aside which, in some years, might force you to make tough choices about how to allocate your monthly or annual savings allotment. With the increasing chance you will need long term care at some point, be aware that long term care is expensive, believe me, and this planning must be started early. **End Summary** Topics: asset protection]]> assets]]> estate planning]]> family]]> finances]]> financial]]> financial plan]]> financial planning]]> invest]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

But Will You Even Be ABLE to Retire?

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Everybody envisions the golden years as a time to relax away from the stresses and strains of working life, but for for many baby boomers it may be a far different picture. The majority of boomers' health is better than is their financial health. Many might be falsely assuming they will be fit enough to work past age 65. Plus, there is always the looming spectre of long term care. At 56, Lana Linder knows her savings aren't enough to enable her to retire in her 60s. So she is counting on being strong enough to keep on working past retirement age, and now is the time for her to do her long term care insurance planning. Now, Linder is a very fit woman. A former professional dancer, she discovered weight training at the age 50, and she regularly goes to a gym to build muscle. "I got pretty serious about it when I was 50, and I didn't like what I saw in the mirror," the freelance filmmaker said. "Once I met a personal trainer who made a custom program for me, I began to see dramatic improvements in my body. **End Summary** Topics: baby-boomers]]> boomers]]> finances]]> financial]]> financial-planning]]> life-savings]]> long-term-care]]> long-term-care-insurance]]> money]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Caregiving Comfort: A Family Caregiver's Portable Support Group

Tue, 13 Feb 2007 00:00:00 -0500

A caregiver needs all the support that can be had, but all-too-often a caregiver cannot find time and energy to attend scheduled support groups. Imagine the usefulness of a portable support group you can carry with you anywhere and access whenever you want. That's what we can have in Carol Bursack's touching little book, "Minding Our Elders: Caregivers Share Their Personal Stories". For over twenty years, Carol Bradley Bursack cared for a neighbor and six elderly family members, Through the years of caregiving and of eventual deaths she has come to know professionals in the field, as well as many other family caregivers. During this 20 year stint when Carol and her hubby were taking care of their parents, she became an astute student of the caregiving poccess, as many do. While Carol learned a ton about caregiving by actually doing it herself, she questioned her feelings of guilt, frustration, burden and stress, aside her feelings of pride and a sense of accomplishment for a job well done. **End Summary** Topics: caregiver]]> caregivers]]> caregiving]]> elder]]> elders]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, CB Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Long Term Care Insurance: Who to Trust?

Wed, 31 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

A contract is a contract, and a long term care insurance company has the right and responsibility to follow it's policy's wording to the letter. Buyers BEWARE! Companies can "interpret" vague wording in their favor. So, it's a very good idea to enlist the expertise of an insurance coverage contract lawyer in the very beginning, rather than waiting until being denied. Just know that lawyers are pricey, so be prepared to spend some extra cash for this last step. Unless you are well versed in contract law and know the in's and out's of the insurance industry's language, do not supposed that you are smarter than your long term care insurance company's lawyers. Make sure you know what you are buying. Checking policy wording with a contract lawyer who knows the long term care insurance lingo while also making sure you have a competent and compassionate long term care insurance broker in your corner is the best of both worlds. Brokers can be very helpful, as long as they are consumer-focused, however they are not trained in law. Even Clay's long term care insurance mentor/trainer, who had years of experience, was caught unaware a few times. **End Summary** Topics: alzheimers]]> alzheimers-disease]]> asset-protection]]> assets]]> baby-boomers]]> benefit]]> benefits]]> biological-clock]]> boomers]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Long Term Care Insurance: Yea or Nay?

Wed, 31 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Long term care insurance coverage simply MUST be considered by everybody who can medically qualify for this important coverage. Why? For starters here are 10 good reasons: 1. The odds: The odds of your needing long term care are overwhelming: The odds of requiring long term care in your lifetime have now risen to 70 percent. That means that seven out of 10 Americans will use their policies - This is a far greater risk than an auto accident or a house fire. Most people wouldn't even consider being without homeowners and auto insurance, but there are far too many people who are not yet protected with long term care insurance. 2. Longevity: Folks are living longer. There are now more people over the age of 100 than any other time in history. Yet, we still have no cure for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, Multiple Sclerosis or many other illnesses that can cause a need for long term care. 3. Independence: No parent wants to ever be a burden on their kids, especially if their kids are raising their own children. **End Summary** Topics: alzheimers]]> alzheimers-disease]]> asset-protection]]> assets]]> baby-boomers]]> benefit]]> benefits]]> biological-clock]]> boomers]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Medicaid Falls Short for Nursing Homes

Tue, 16 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

First, what is Medicaid?.......... Well, Medicaid is a Federal medical bills assistance program that pays medical bills for eligible, needy persons. It is administered by each state. All payments are made directly to the providers of medical and other health care services. The Medicaid-eligible person does not pay the health care provider for services. The only exception is a patient in a Medicaid-approved nursing facility who may be required to contribute part of his/her income toward the cost of care. Medicaid is welfare for the poor, the true and honest poor. Medicaid is NOT for people of means trying to fake impoverishment in order to get on the dole. That door has been slammed shut. Reflecting a national problem, leaders of North Carolina's nursing home and long-term care facilities say that the money which Medicaid provides for patient care simply isn't enough to cover costs. North Carolina's problems reflect a grrowing national concern. It's a trend that likely could send the industry spiralling into a financial crash, said the head of a reform group. **End Summary** Topics: alzheimers]]> alzheimers-disease]]> asset-protection]]> assets]]> baby-boomers]]> benefit]]> benefits]]> biological-clock]]> boomers]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Long Term Care Insurance circa 2007

Tue, 16 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

When long term care insurance was first conceived and offered, back in the 1980's, most LTCi premium rates were much lower than today's policies. Why have they increased so much and why are long term care insurance companies raising premiums on existing policies? Well, for one thing, many long term care insurance polices today offer significantly more benefits than the old "nursing home only" policies. Due to consumer demand as well as consumer protection laws being passed, long term care insurance policies of today have less restrictions (As with any contract, always read the fine print!). The more an insurance company has to pay out, the higher the premiums with be. Other reasons, besides the all too prevalent inflation, are that long term care insurance companies had no previous actuarial data to crunch. For instance: How long would a person pay before going on claim? How many would die before collecting benefits? How much money would the long term care insurance company need to pay out in claims? And finally, would the company's product sales and investments provide enough assets to keep them viable? Insurance companies didn't have past experience with long term care claims, plus competition was stiff. **End Summary** Topics: boomer]]> boomers]]> long term care]]> long term care insurance]]> insurance]]> caregiving]]> caregiver]]> caregivers]]> social security]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Long Term Care Insurance: Five Simple Steps for Comparing and Choosing Policies

Sun, 14 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Every insurance policy is a legal contract. Once agreed upon by both parties, a long term care insurance company must uphold their contract to the letter, or risk lawsuits and regulatory prosecution. Each policy is crafted with utmost care using the probabilities of actuaries, as well as contract lawyers' keen legaleze, and here's how to navigate the decision process. Understanding the wording of a policy and correctly comparing policies from various companies can be daunting for most folks and exhausting. You must develop a grasp of insurance lingo, and it wouldn't hurt to know how specific points in each contract have been interpreted by courts of law, either. In case you weren't aware, the LTCi sales brochures are not contacts. Sales brochures are created to briefly explain a product and to entice you to buy it. What is printed in a brochure does not represent the intricacies of contract law, yet the brochure MUST, by law, be congruent with the related, legal contract. Even worse, no insurance company's promotional literature can be trusted to thoroughly detail the terms of the target policy/contract. Sales is sales, and truth is truth. **End Summary** Topics: boomer]]> boomers]]> long term care]]> long term care insurance]]> insurance]]> caregiving]]> caregiver]]> caregivers]]> social security]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Caregiving's Costly Burden

Sat, 13 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Hey - If I had known that official government policy toward caring for elderly parents was that their children would have to do it all, well I would have had 10 kids. While it's said that those in the developing world have numerous children with the hope that some will survive to care for them when they're old, those in developed counties have about two children. Somehow I guess I thought our so-called developed world had some type of policies for elderly caregiving, but the United States simply doesn't. While Medicare will take care of hospitalization for a heart attack, those who need chronic care for Parkinson's disease, diabetes, Alzheimer's disease or heart failure just have to depend on family, pure and simple. After that, long term care insurance coverage is the only answer. Boomers can purchase long term care insurance for their own future care, but this doesn't help the greatest generation that needs care now. With no program to address chronic care, Medicaid, a welfare program for the proven poor, has become the default option for much long term care - nursing homes. **End Summary** Topics: caregiving]]> caregiver]]> caregivers]]> long term care]]> long term care insurance]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

ChoicePoint: To retire, start over or hang in there?

Fri, 12 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Baby boomers are a different breed from previous generations, and they demand different choices for retirement. Forty years and a gold watch won't work on a me-first, go-for-it crowd of free thinkers weaned on social change, pot and LSD. So what choices are boomers facing? Prior generations retired after working at one company for 25-30 years, and after that stint, they then retire and get a pension plan. Retirees had a small house paid for, a nice Social Security check and a pension. Add to that a life expectancy of around 70 years, and you'll have a perfect retirement plan. Nowadays it's a different reality for sure. Life expectancies are creeping up past 80, pension plans are quickly disappearing, and full retirement is no longer at age 65, but rather 66, plus we can expect that to change even more in the future. With the fact that many of us baby boomers are poorly prepared financially, and it's clear why the current retirement landscape ain't so rosy for boomers. So, more and more, boomers are seeking entrepreneurial opportunities to help shore up their inadequate retirement savings. But businesses can and do fail, often. **End Summary** Topics: retire]]> retired]]> retirement]]> work]]> social security]]> baby boomers]]> boomers]]> retiree]]> retirees]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Big Changes in Pension Plans, but Long Term Care Untouched

Thu, 11 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

There are big changes coming to retirement plans. In August 2006, President Bush signed into law the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA). This law affects both employee funded plans such as 401(k)s and traditional defined benefit pension plans. Congress was partially motivated by the looming crisis of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. So several of the provisions in the act serve to shore up private defined benefit pension plans that provide a pension. Sadly, it's likely the stricter rules will encourage the recent trend of companies terminating or freezing their defined benefit plans. Most of the changes regarding defined benefit pension plans are fairly arcane, but one thing is clear: These plans do nothing to address long term care needs. For long term care, Uncle Sam makes it clear that they want you to buy your own long term care insurance, and it's in your interest to get it early, long before you may need it. Long term care has become an increasingly urgent policy issue. The number of elderly Americans and their proportion of the nation's population are growing, and Americans who reach age 65 are living longer. **End Summary** Topics: retirement]]> retirement plan]]> retirement planning]]> pension]]> long term care]]> long term care insurance]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Boomers want to retire yet stay involved

Wed, 10 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

Many retirees, especially we baby boomers, want to retire from their careers yet become involved in other areas such as social and health services. Boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, are starting to retire, and they want to make remarkable contributions to society. Sure, people retire to play golf, but they soon find that golf isn't enough. We need to embrace the energy, expertise and wisdom of retirees and encourage their involvement. To optimize this opportunity, some false impressions must be cast aside and hurdles cleared. Unpaid volunteers are often not as respected or as valued as paid personnel, a trend that has to be changed. Also unpaid positions are often not as challenging. To fully engage volunteers, we must ave community commitment of money and of time for nonprofits to develop needed systems and infrastructures. To make the volunteer experience win-win for both the organization and the individual. Volunteers should be given orientation and training, job descriptions and supervision. The expectations must be clear for all involved. We suggest shifting the view of retirement from 'the freedom FROM work' to the 'the freedom TO work'. **End Summary** Topics: baby boomer]]> baby boomers]]> boomer]]> boomers]]> retire]]> retired]]> retirement]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Friends and Family Will Be Tapped for Long Term Care

Wed, 10 Jan 2007 00:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON - More than 1/3 of U.S. residents contacted indicated they would turn to family and friends for long term care, a new survey shows. That is the feeling, should the situation arise, among 39 percent of the 1,025 adults polled by the Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education. However statistics reveal that nearly one in two will enter a nursing facility at some point. Relatively few interviewees said they plan to rely on insurance OR private savings. "It's a train wreck waiting to happen for this generation," says SK Cotton, an industry observer. Deb Newman, a LIFE Foundation board member, says the survey shows that many people have no plan at all when it comes to long term care. Most respondents said they expected to help finance long term care with Social Security and savings, yet they admitted little knowledge of care costs and the likelihood of needing care. Cotton suggests looking into insurance coverage as soon as possible through the resources now available online. **End Summary** Topics: long term care]]> long term care insurance]]> insurance]]> caregiving]]> caregiver]]> caregivers]]> social security]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

The End of Unlimited Lifetime Benefits in New Long Term Care Insurance Policies

Fri, 15 Dec 2006 00:00:00 -0500

Prominent long term care insurance carrier Penn Treaty recently announced that it will discontinue offering the "unlimited lifetime" benefit option on all new policy forms as of 1/1/2007. Will other insurance companies follow suit? We think so, as the industry adjusts to changes in the all-too-real world of care and care giving. With rising baby boomers life expectancies and broadening offerings in the care delivery systems "unlimited lifetime" benefits simply pose expanded and uncertain risk for insurers. This risk naturally translates to pricing which places "unlimited lifetime" benefit out of reach for the average consumer, so the insurers are opting to offer benefits which are limited to a fixed number of years payout or a limited "pool of money" payout. This makes sense by insurance standards. Exposure to unlimited risk is not prudent for most companies, although some carriers may still choose to offer "unlimited lifetime" benefits to high net-worth clients. Look for policies to focus more on 5-year, 4-year and 3-year benefits for long term care. **End Summary** Topics: finance]]> financial]]> financial plan]]> financial planning]]> retirement]]> long term care]]> long term care insurance]]> health]]> health care]]> ]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Caregiver Contracts Make Things Clear

Tue, 14 Nov 2006 00:00:00 -0500

Caregiving is not the kind of topic that makes for pleasant chit-chat over tea, much like long term care and long term care insurance. Yet these are crucial issues to address boldly with vigor and verve, if you want future years to unfold gracefully. So often our tendancies to ignore, deny, procrastinate and avoid can leave these issues unaddressed, and when the time for care is upon us (care which will VERY likely be needed, at least for half the population), then we could be left in an ugly, ugly situation. Caregiver contracts are a new option for caring for aging elders. Use these formal agreements set up by an attorney. A growing number of families are setting up caregiver contracts, in which relatives are formally hired to take care of elderly or disabled family members. These new arrangements, which can also be called personal-care or personal-service agreements, can help to reduce the size of a parent's estate. They can also minimize battles between siblings and various family members. **End Summary** Topics: caregiving]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Estate Planning: Make Sure Your Wishes are Honored

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 00:00:00 -0500

A medical power of attorney and living will are crucial estate planning steps, and like long term care insurance, must be set in place early in life for optimal protection. She was just 26 years old when she went into cardiac arrest, fell down in her apartment and was rushed to the hospital. She lapsed into a coma and spent 15 years of her life in what doctors diagnosed as an "irreversible persistent vegetative state". For all that time she was unable to make any medical decisions whatsoever. Her husband believed she did not want to live in that state, and asked that her feeding tube be removed, but her parents disagreed. The legal battles that followed made history, and debates raged across the USA. She was known to the world as Terri Schiavo. There are two basic steps you can take to plan ahead. No one likes thinking about the worst, let alone planning for it, but if Terri's situation has taught us anything, it's that planning for such events saves your family a great deal of potential heartache, and it puts the focus on your life and your wishes. **End Summary** Topics: estate plan]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Won't Medicare Pay for Our Long Term Care?

Sat, 21 Oct 2006 00:00:00 -0400

Fact: Medicare is NOT DESIGNED to cover long term care. It was designed primarily to help with 'short term' rehabilitation. "How much WILL the government actually pay?" Medicare does not pay for long term care expenses. Medicare does cover some limited convalescent skilled nursing care and some limited home health care under restrictive, short-term conditions, but not for long term care. This short-term care is usually limited to 100 days, and to get it the following conditions must be met: * For Medicare you must have been in a hospital for at least three days immediately prior to entering the nursing facility. This eliminates most Alzheimer's and Parkinson's cases. * For Medicare you must go into the facility for the same condition for which you were previously hospitalized, and it must be within thirty days of discharge. * For Medicare you must be getting better each day. Once you level off, Medicare stops paying. In any case, Medicare covers only Skilled Nursing care and does not cover Intermediate or Custodial care at all! Susan L. McGloghlon, president of the American HealthCare Institute National Medicare Recovery Services, Inc. **End Summary** Topics: medicare]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.

Long Term Care Decision Can Take an Emotional Toll on Caregiver

Fri, 20 Oct 2006 00:00:00 -0400

It is universally agreed that one of the most difficult decisions a caregiver must make is deciding when it is finally time to choose a long term care facility for a loved one. Accepting that home is no longer enough is tremendously difficult for a caregiver and all concerned. Not only must families handle the grief, heartbreak and guilt of the placement, but they must also decide which type of care facility will be most appropriate for a loved one - plus, how to manage family finances. This period is, without a doubt, one of the most stressful for any family, especially for the the caregiver. For the caregiver the bitter grief of separation and lingering guilt about the choice continues throughout this period. Caregiver strain can be made even harder by the patient who pleads to return home or asks staff to call the caregiver at home. Caregiver guilt can be devastating. As friends, family and community we can help acaregiver at this time. Telephone the caregiver often, or better still drop by for a visit. Listen to caregiver concerns and offer your support. Caregiving can be a very lonely game. **End Summary** Topics: caregiving]]>]]> About the Author: ]]> Long term care insurance activist, Clay Cotton, writes for http://www.PrepSmart.com - The Online Baby Boomers Decision Assistance Center, where you get Free Long Term Care Insurance advice, comparative rate quotes and personal guidance, all while safely at home in your favorite pajamas and bunny slippers.