Our last article discussed what Medicare will cost you. It also said that Medicare could be the best health insurance you’ve ever owned, at the lowest overall cost. That’s great news.
What’s Missing from Medicare?
No health insurance plan is perfect, of course, and Medicare does not cover some things that you will very likely need. Some of those things are big. They can cost you a lot out of pocket and completely ruin your finances. What are they?
The Huge Expenses that Medicare Will NOT Cover
If you set up your Medicare right, it will do a great job paying for your doctor, hospital and prescription bills. So that worry is over.
But many people are aware of another worry. And it’s an expensive one too. It can:
- Ruin your finances and leave you poor
- Leave your spouse poor after you die
- Destroy your family’s wellbeing, happiness and peace of mind
It is short-term care and long-term care. Rather than avoid the subject and hoping that it doesn’t happen to you (the chances are 50% that it will happen) let’s face the problem head on.
Why You Need Short-Term or Long-Term Care Insurance
Here are two examples of common Medicare exclusions:
Home Care After Accidents
Charlie was a senior in great physical condition. One day he was up on a ladder cleaning his gutters, fell off, and broke his hip. Multiple hospital stays, complications, and infections after surgery left him laid up at home for six months.
His spouse, Jennifer, could not pick Charlie up to bathe him, clothe him and move him to and from his wheelchair. So, she hired someone to come in and bathe, dress and move Charlie around, and to cook, clean and shop for them. For the six months that lasted, Charlie and Jennifer paid for that care out of their own pocket.
Medicare does not cover ‘custodial’ home health care. The most Medicare will do is send a nurse out, perhaps once per week, to monitor medications, give injections and the like. The nurse will not do housework, shopping or things like that.
Cognitive Impairments
Two years after Charlie recovered, Jennifer was diagnosed with dementia, and then later with Alzheimer’s disease. Physically very healthy, Jennifer still could not be left alone.
Charlie drained his investment accounts to pay for many months of home health care. Then he used more money from savings to move them into an assisted living facility. Eventually Jennifer had to be put into a nursing home, and that expense completely wrecked the rest of Charlie’s life savings and investments. Now there is no inheritance to leave their children and grandchildren.
Medicare does not pay for assisted living or for nursing home stays.
The Solution is Easy to Discuss
Let’s talk over an insurance plan that makes sense for you. A short-term care policy, or perhaps a long-term care policy, will protect your life savings; and your family’s well-being. Don’t become a burden to those you love.
On a Budget?
Adding a long-term care option to a life insurance policy could only cost you pennies a day. Let’s find out now, before it’s too late.
