@dragonmom Not sure compliance allows me to do that (and I don’t really know how to). I would just google “Long term care linked benefits”. Several insurance companies (I like Lincoln Financial) offer these. Also, many regular life insurance contracts now offer LTC riders that allow you to use death benefit during life for LTC. Talk to your local insurance agent about them.
My MIL had Alzheimer’s as did her parents and now my FIL has it. You can bet your sweet patootie I got LTC insurance on my DH! I, luckily, was able to get in a group plan through my work benefits. I prepaid his policy in 10 years, $444/mo, but July 2020 I’m done paying and he’s covered for life. I did a lot of research on how the premiums go up and up usually every 5 years when the insurance people go to the state board to get a rate increase approved. I only had to pay one rate increase since I will have his policy paid off before the 2nd 5 year term. I’m hoping and a praying that I just threw 50k down the toilet, I wouldn’t mind at all never having to use this insurance, in fact I’m hoping I don’t, but I’m prepared if I have to.
Regarding what the surviving spouse can keep when one is in a nursing home, the family home, the car, and 80k in the bank, at least that was the rule in Ohio in 2010 when we went through this with MIL. The nursing home took MIL’s pension and monthly ss check and any investments in her name to pay for her care.
And I’m another who would NEVER put my loved one in a medicaid facility, have you people ever been in any of those? Better to have two or 3 years of stays put aside to be private pay at a nice facility and then when you run out of money they “usually” accept medicaid for you.
This was sitting in my “reply” box. Not sure it ever posted.
Since Medicaid has a 5 year look back, that 3M house would have to have been bought 5+ years before, and the $ from the sale of the previous house would also have to go into the Mega million one. So one spouse gets to live in a mega million $ mansion and the other in. Medicaid facility. Yeah, real fair. Not.
There are usually caps on how much the primary residence can be worth for eligibility purposes. I know WA has a limit.
$3 million house. Snort. Our gross incomes won’t have equaled that for our entire working careers. Lol. Our housing hasn’t appreciated here since the 90s and won’t anytime soon. We can’t count on it selling for any price. I don’t care if my kids get anything. I don’t want to be starving and living in a drug, rat infested hellhole for my final 10-20 years after spending the previous 5-10 years caring for my spouse 24-7 to try to keep him out of a nursing home for as long as possible. Sheesh.
And sure a cure might come out. Nobody would be happier than H or me. But I definitely can’t count on that. I don’t think we have LTC as a group option through work, but I may look more closely during open enrollment.
“$3 million house. Snort. Our gross incomes won’t have equaled that for our entire working careers.”
Not even with compounding interest? I don’t believe that.
https://www.bankrate.com/calculators/savings/save-million-calculator.aspx
Of course with compounding interest. The point is, if we are lucky by that time we might be able to throw our assets into. $300,000 house not $3 million. And I’m not trying to leave my kids millions. I’d like to be able to eat. And I’ve lived most of my life squeezing blood out of a turnip. I know how to scrimp. You won’t see me on the dressing young thread. One pair of pants equals my yearly clothing budget even now. Half my work pants cost $8-15 that I bought 20 years ago. We buy cheap and make it last out of necessity.
The other point is I (and many other posters on multiple threads) bring up sincere questions about something that is bothering me/us a lot. A concern that even thinking about the situation can bring me to tears. And people come on and blast life decisions about being some spend thrift and gold digger and opportunist or whatever. I think I’m done here.
Our house is our house…not considered by US in our total assets…but was considered as such by our estate lawyer. The fact is, we consider this a place to live while we are alive. When neither of us is alive, it will be an asset for our kids to deal with.
Huh???
My mil worked as an RN for years at a Medicaid long term nursing facility. It was nice and clean with caring employees. She lives in a small town in Michigan. It was her choice when her beloved mil had to go into a facility. And her suggestion when mil’s next door neighbor’s dad had dementia and had to go into a facility.
My dad was lucky to be a veteran and when he needed long term care, he went to his area veterans home. It didn’t come to that, but it was a Medicaid facility and since my parents don’t have a lot of money, we were grateful that he wouldn’t have to move once they ran out of money.
So I guess I’ve been lucky to see a couple of Medicaid facility that I thought were very nice.
@ClassicMom98, there are many different people on here with many different financial situations. I hope you don’t feel that you don’t belong. I admit to be a little confused but everyone has different levels of comfort. I for one, hope to live out my money and live modestly and in relative health.
Sorry, but I don’t understand @ClassicMom98’s reference to spendthrifts, gold diggers, and opportunists.
The county nursing homes in my state get very solid ratings.
There are good and bad in our state, with a wide range of prices. Some of the priciest ones have some pretty big gaps in care.
I think we all hope to keep ourselves in s good health as possible for as long as possible.